BATON ROUGE, LA — Southern University fought until the final whistle but couldn't withstand a fourth-quarter surge from Florida A&M, falling 43–35 in front of 17,180 fans at A.W. Mumford Stadium on Saturday evening.
The Jaguars (1–7, 0–4 SWAC) led 28–22 midway through the fourth quarter before the Rattlers (3–4, 2–1) exploded for 21 unanswered points in just over six minutes to take control. Southern added one last touchdown, but Florida A&M held on for the win
Southern jumped ahead early behind running back Trey Holly, who scored twice in the first half on short runs of two and three yards to build a 14–3 lead. But Florida A&M clawed back behind kicker Daniel Porto, who connected on field goals of 29,48, and 20 yards, and a pair of rushing touchdowns from Jamal Hailey and quarterback RJ Johnson III to grab a 19–14 halftime advantage.
Southern quarterback Ashton Strother engineered a 13-play, 91-yard march to open the second half, finishing it himself with a 1-yard TD run to give the Jaguars a 21–19 lead. After a Porto field goal made it 22–21, Strother again punched in a short score early in the fourth to give Southern a 28–22 lead
BY THE NUMBERS
Total Yards: FAMU 547 | SU 414
Rushing: FAMU 260 (6.2 avg) | SU 220 (5.8 avg)
Passing: FAMU 287 (22–32–0) | SU 197 (12–28–0)
Time of Possession: FAMU 31:18 | SU 28:47
Third Downs: FAMU 8 –14 | SU 9-15
Stat Leaders
Southern University
QB Ashton Strother: 12-of-28, 197 yards; 3 rushing TDs
RB Trey Holly: 26 carries, 145 yards, 2 TDs
WR Darren Morris: 4 receptions, 82 yards
LB Herman Brister III: 14 tackles (9 solo), 0.5 TFL
Key Takeaways
Big Plays Burned the Jaguars: Southern's defense surrendered three touchdowns of 39 yards or longer in the fourth quarter, turning a close game into a deficit too large to overcome.
Rushing Dominance: Both teams leaned heavily on the ground game — combining for 477 rushing yards and nine rushing touchdowns.
Missed Opportunities: Southern went 9-for-15 on third down but couldn't sustain drives late, while penalties (10 for 79 yards) repeatedly stalled momentum.
Balanced Rattler Attack: Florida A&M had 547 total yards with a nearly perfect balance between rushing (260) and passing (287).
UP NEXT
Southern will be back in action on Saturday, November 1st, as they travel to Pine Bluff, Arkansas, to take on the Golden Lions from the University of Arkansas - Pine Bluff. The Game is slated for a 2 PM kickoff and will be live on SWAC TV.
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