Florida A&M coach Quinn Gray Sr. used his appearance on The Paul Finebaum Show to frame the Rattlers’ season as more than a reset.
“We’re focusing on making sure that we take this thing and push, move it in the right direction and make sure we get Florida A&M football back on the map where it rightfully belongs,” Gray said.
Florida A&M is three years removed from an HBCU national championship. But since then, the Rattlers have been a distant third in the SWAC East the last two seasons before ultimately moving on from James Colzie to hire the native son and ex-star quarterback.
Rebuilding the Rattlers together
Gray said the culture change is being built through connection, not slogans but work.
The Rattlers will certainly need it after an offseason that saw the program be hit with an NCAA postseason ban stemming from APR penalties.
“We got to make sure that we’re building that family atmosphere,” he said, explaining that the team brought players back into the dorms so they could learn how teammates respond in different situations.
That process, he said, also helps coaches better understand the roster. “We wanted to make sure that we got to know our players deep on a deeper level just versus the surface level,” Gray said.
He added that the staff’s job is to keep everyone aligned with the same expectations. “It’s always standards over feelings at the end of the day,” Gray said. “As long as we ain’t worried about your feelings and you understand what the standard is, I think we’re headed down the right direction.”
A different kind of season opener
Gray called the season-opening game against Albany State — school he led to an historic season in 2025 — a fun challenge, even with the emotions of facing his former program.
“It’s going to be fun, man,” he said. “We’re really focused in on going out and playing good football.”
He said the reunion will be friendly before kickoff, but not once the game starts.
“Once that ball is kicked off and that whistle blows, it’s a different situation,” Gray said. “There are another opponent across the field from us that’s trying to do something to us that we don’t want to happen, and we’re going to act accordingly.”
