FAMU football coach James Colzie comments on 42-14 SWAC loss vs Alabama State
FAMU football got blown out by Alabama State 42-14 in its SWAC opener on Ken Riley Field at Bragg Memorial Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025.
Florida A&M will host North Carolina Central for a Week 7 college football game on Saturday, Oct. 11.The Rattlers are looking to recover from a slow start, while the Eagles are on a three-game winning streak.FAMU’s quarterback situation is uncertain, while NCCU features a top running back in Chris Mosley.The game will be televised on HBCU GO and broadcast on Tallahassee radio station 96.1 JAMZ.
A big-time HBCU football matchup is on the horizon this Saturday, Oct. 11.
Florida A&M will host North Carolina Central on Ken Riley Field at Bragg Memorial Stadium for a Week 7 college football game, kicking off at 3 p.m.
HBCU GO will televise the game while Tallahassee radio station 96.1 JAMZ will provide commentary on local airwaves.
FAMU and NCCU haven’t met since the 2019 season, when both were members of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. The Rattlers narrowly defeated the Eagles 28-21 during FAMU’s 2019 homecoming football game.
The Rattlers are now part of the Southwestern Athletic Conference, joining in 2021.
What does this chapter of FAMU versus NCCU hold?
The Rattlers look to shake a slow start, last getting a 42-14 beatdown from Alabama State in the SWAC opener two weeks ago before going on an unplanned bye. Meanwhile, the NCCU Eagles are rolling on a three-game winning streak, most recently capturing a 50-42 triumph at East Texas A&M.
Here are three X-Factor players from FAMU and NCCU, along with the official score prediction for Saturday.
RJ Johnson III or Jett Peddy, FAMU Quarterbacks
The Rattlers’ quarterback play is in question entering the FAMU versus NCCU game.
Will FAMU continue to start RJ Johnson III, or will backup Jett Peddy get a look to run the offense?
FAMU head coach James Colzie III is holding that answer close to the vest.
Through four games, Johnson has completed 72 of 115 pass attempts (63 percent) for 810 yards, five touchdowns, and has thrown zero interceptions. Although Johnson has a high completion rate, the FAMU offense has struggled to move the ball downfield, which was evident in its losses to Howard and Alabama State.
Meanwhile, Peddy has completed 10 of his 21 passes for 104 yards this season. He struggled to complete passes in Week 2 versus Florida Atlantic.
However, he impressed while playing a portion of the Week 3 game versus Albany State, going nine for 14 for 99 yards, with one interception. Leading FAMU to its first touchdown drive, Peddy is credited for sparking the Rattlers’ comeback in the 33-25 victory.
NCCU Eagles head coach Trei Oliver appears to be preparing his team to face Johnson this Saturday.
“They do a good job of taking care of the football. I don’t think their quarterback has thrown an interception this year,” Oliver said of FAMU and its starting quarterback, Johnson.
“So we’ve got to change some looks in the backend and confuse him a little bit so we can try to turn them over. The big thing overall is just limiting those explosive plays.”
NCCU allows 223.8 passing yards per game, fourth out of six MEAC teams alongside letting opponents average 29.3 points.
Regardless of who’s throwing the football for the Rattlers, Oliver spoke glowingly of FAMU receivers Kenari Wilcher and Jalen ‘Speedy’ Rogers.
Wilcher has nine receptions for 175 yards and a touchdown in four games. Rogers, who returned from injury against Alabama State, has three catches for 88 yards.
“Those are probably the two best receivers we’re seeing,” Oliver said.
“Number 7 [Wilcher] is an explosive player,” he added.
Chris Mosley, North Carolina Central Running Back
NCCU has one of HBCU’s premier running backs in its arsenal.
Chris Mosley has rushed 104 times for 607 yards and five touchdowns. The 5-foot-11, 180-pound speedster is second in MEAC rushing and ninth in the Football Championship Subdivision’s nationwide statistics.
And FAMU has gotten run all over this season, giving up 165.5 yards per game.
Led by Mosley, who sports No. 1, the Eagles play good ol’ MEAC football, predicated on running.
But NCCU also has a solid quarterback in Walker Harris, who leads the MEAC and is fifth in FCS passing yards. He’s completed 114 of 183 pass attempts (62 percent) for 1,514 yards and 10 touchdowns against four interceptions.
Through six games, NCCU is the top scoring team in the MEAC and fifth in the FCS with 34.7 points per game. The Eagles have averaged 53.7 points per game in their last three contests, all victories.
“Looking at their numbers, they do a great job running the football. And they got a quarterback that does a great job of throwing the rock,” FAMU’s coach Colzie explained. “We’ve got our hands full. We’re going to have to start playing like the good football team that I think that we can be.”
TJ Huggins, FAMU Cornerback
As mentioned, the NCCU Eagles can throw the football just as well as they run it.
But the Rattlers are third in the SWAC in pass defense, with opponents averaging 203 yards. That’s only behind teams unbeaten in league games this far, Prairie View A&M and Jackson State.
NCCU has three top ten receivers in MEAC reception stats: Chance Peterson, Chauncey Spikes, and Mekhi Wall.
Peterson leads the Eagles with 23 receptions for 324 yards and has scored a touchdown.
On Saturday, it will be up to FAMU cornerback TJ Huggins and his 6-foot-3, 185-pound frame to step up to NCCU’s top pass catcher.
“We can’t have any busted coverages. We had two against Alabama State,” Colzie said of FAMU’s pass defense. “So just continuing to communicate well and put our guys in the situation to harp on it and practice on it.”
Gerald Thomas III Official Score Prediction: NCCU 45, FAMU 28
Florida A&M (1-3, 0-1 in SWAC) vs North Carolina Central (4-2)When: Saturday, Oct. 11 at 3 p.m.Where: Ken Riley Field at Bragg Memorial Stadium in Tallahassee, FloridaTV/Radio: HBCU GO, 96.1 JAMZ
Gerald Thomas, III is a multi-time award-winning journalist for his coverage of the Florida A&M Rattlers at the Tallahassee Democrat.
Follow his award-winning coverage on RattlerNews.com and contact him via email at GDThomas@Tallahassee.com or on the app formerly known as Twitter @3peatgee.