Florida A&M coach James Colzie was understandably visibly upset and trying to explain how the Rattlers record 23-game home winning streak ended at the hands of previously winless Mississippi Valley State.
The defeat — and the way it transpired — was symbolic of the way in which FAMU had performed through 10 games en route to a current five-loss season, the most for the program since 2018.
Florida A&M fell behind early, was inconsistent in all areas, and committed too many turnovers to overcome. That was the toxic potion that had plagued the Rattlers against a feisty Delta Devils team and sickened them throughout the regular season.
And because of that, there will be no repeat SWAC championship or HBCU national title. This version of the Rattlers — while talented — did not play up to the standard at which it had judged itself since leaving the MEAC in 2020.
Simply put, the Rattlers were not good enough, and the head coach has long realized it.
“That’s not a 5-5 football team inside that locker room,” said Colzie. “That’s what our record is, but it’s love coach, just being a head coach of this football team. The end result today is not good enough.”
Colzie, the first-year coach who took over the Rattlers after a tumultuous offseason when Willie Simmons left for Duke, followed by a controversial coach search for a replacement that landed on him being offered the job, admitted changes and hard decisions will need to be made.
“We got to make some hard decisions internally,” Colzie said. “We’re better than this. I’ve seen it. I’ve lived it. I’ve been part of it. I said we were going to maintain the standard. We’re 5-5 … that’s not the damn standard around here.”
