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Rattlers get same ode from Billy Joe

By JAMAL THALJI

© St. Petersburg Times, published August 29, 2000

Florida A&M coach Billy Joe has found his new mantra:

"We've got a lot of new, young and inexperienced players," he said, repeatedly, Monday.

But even with 15 new starters, the Rattlers are ranked No. 7 in the Division I-AA poll and are a contender for the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference title.

Joe hopes his "new, young and inexperienced" team is ready for some unusual challenges leading up to Saturday's 1 p.m. season opener on the road against MEAC opponent Delaware State.

For starters, the team will have to fly to Philadelphia, then ride a bus for 11/2 hours to get to the Dover campus.

Then there is new coach Ben Blacknall taking over the Hornets' program from the fired John McKenzie. Joe wonders what new schemes Delaware State will be running.

Joe and his staff have an idea of what the Hornets will try to do. But just to be safe, Joe had his Rattlers prepare for everything.

"We think they're going to use a wide-open offensive attack, and we think they're going to run their 4-4, 4-3 defense," Joe said. "But we're not sure about that, so we're trying to prepare for everything, which means we won't have any one concept down real pat.

"Our guys are handling it quite well, about as well as can be expected against a team with as many new, young and inexperienced players as we do.

"But they're very intelligent young men, and they're catching on very fast."

WELCOME TO TALLAHASEE: FAMU transfer wide receiver Antwan Floyd is quickly learning how intensely football is celebrated in the capital.

At the eighth annual Rattler Community Kickoff Banquet at the Leon County Civic Center, Floyd told the Tallahassee Democrat he was amazed at the spirited festivities kicking off the season.

More than 600 fans attended Sunday's pep rally, which was entertained by members of the Marching 100's pep band and the FAMU cheerleaders.

And it's not like they didn't know how to play football where Floyd came from.

"When I was at Penn State, I never saw something like this," Floyd told the newspaper.

THE BEST-LAID PLANS: The cancellation of Sunday night's Georgia Tech-Virginia Tech game had reverberations all the way in Orlando.

Central Florida coach Mike Kruczek, his staff and his players have been focusing throughout the off-season on their Sept. 2 opener against Georgia Tech in Atlanta.

In turn, the Knights hoped the Yellow Jackets would be so fixated on their road game against the No. 11 Hokies that it could work to UCF's advantage.

"I see both positives and disadvantages in it for us," Kruczek said. "I would have liked to have seen the game, as we play both of those teams this season, and it would have been a good chance to see their scheme. That would have been a positive thing.

"The good thing about this is that (Georgia Tech doesn't) have a game under their belts and normally you make more mistakes in the first game than in the rest of the season. Now they haven't had that first game, so that takes away their advantage of already having played one game."

CAN WE GO, TOO?: Bethune-Cookman College takes on Savannah State at 7 p.m. Saturday in the 47th annual Gateway Classic in Jacksonville's Alltell Stadium.

But forgive Wildcats quarterback Pa'tell Troutman if he is already looking ahead to the Sept. 30 game against Morgan State at Thomas Robinson Stadium, which just happens to be in Nassau, Bahamas, for the Conch Bowl Classic. "I think it's a blessing to go there especially for my senior year to go all out," Troutman said. "Because that's what we're going to do, is go all out."

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