Florida A&M powered past Southern University Saturday night, relying on a career-best performance from running back Jamal Hailey to secure a 43-35 victory in Baton Rouge.
Hailey ripped off 157 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 19 carries—including a pair of long fourth-quarter scores that propelled the Rattlers to their second Southwestern Athletic Conference win of the season.
Quarterback RJ Johnson III set the tone early, accounting for touchdowns through the air and on the ground. Johnson finished 22-for-32 passing for 287 yards and hit Goldie Lawrence for a 74-yard touchdown strike in the fourth.
The explosive sequence, coupled with Hailey’s 39-yard score just two minutes later, broke a 28-28 deadlock to put Florida A&M (3-4, 2-1 SWAC) on top with under seven minutes to play.
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Hailey capped his night when he blasted through the line for a 56-yard touchdown, stretching the Rattlers’ lead to 43-28 midway through the fourth.
Southern’s Ashton Strother answered with his third one-yard TD run, but the Jaguars (1-7, 0-4) couldn’t close the gap further before the final whistle.
Southern had gained momentum in the first half, with running back Trey Holly finding the end zone twice to build an early 14-3 lead.
But FAMU clawed back, as kicker Daniel Porto notched a pair of field goals, Hailey plunged in from seven yards out, and Johnson bolted 26 yards for a late second-quarter score to hand Florida A&M a 19-14 halftime advantage.
Strother completed 12 of 28 passes for 197 yards for the Jaguars, while Holly rumbled for 145 yards on 26 carries. Lawrence caught four balls for 95 yards in the win, with Porto booting three field goals to help the Rattlers control the final margin
