College football

Rattlers senior joins exclusive company

By SHARON GINN
Published November 20, 2005

ORLANDO - Florida A&M senior Rashard Pompey became just the third rusher in school history to reach 3,000 yards, gaining 85 on 21 carries to finish his career with 3,006. But it was another number - the final score - that gave Pompey far more pleasure. Like the rest of the Rattlers' seniors, he avoided becoming part of the first class to lose to Bethune-Cookman in four consecutive seasons. "Coach ( Rubin Carter) said he was going to put the ball in my hands," Pompey said.

And he took good care of it. Pompey scored FAMU's only two touchdowns, on a 1-yard run in the second quarter and 2-yard run in the fourth that capped a game-changing 90-yard drive.

Pompey finished with 1,095 yards on the season, 761 in the final five games. The Rattlers won four of those.

The only players ahead of Pompey are Willie Galimore (3,592, 1953-56) and Tony Barber (3,278, 1983-86).

SOPHOMORE SLUMP: Quarterback Jimmie Russell had a dream Florida Classic as a freshman, rolling up 426 yards of offense in leading the Wildcats to a 58-52 overtime victory.

For his second Classic, Russell lacked the spark he showed in last year's game.

He rushed for 139 yards but lost 46 and completed only 5 of 13 passes for 78 yards. Russell faced pressure the entire game and was sacked three times.

The Wildcats took a 17-0 first-quarter lead but did not get to the end zone again.

"They made a lot of adjustments," Russell said.

"The adjustments made it hard for us to make our key blocks."

FINAL CHANCE: Throughout his only season as a starting quarterback, FAMU senior Josh Driscoll struggled with injuries and inconsistent play. But Carter opted to put him in during overtime instead of sophomore Albert Chester, saying the situation favored Driscoll's experience.

Driscoll's role in overtime involved handing it off six times to Pompey, who got the Rattlers down to the 1 to set up Wesley Taylor's winning field goal.

For the game, Driscoll completed 7 of 13 passes for 42 yards and no interceptions.

SQUIBS: Coach Alvin Wyatt burned the Wildcats' last timeout with more than 12 minutes left in regulation. Shortly afterward, the Rattlers began their fourth-quarter touchdown drive. ... The Florida Classic ended FAMU's 100th season of football. ... A sellout crowd of 70,112 was in attendance.

[Last modified November 20, 2005, 00:55:14]