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FAMU faces many holes

The canceled Grambling game has the school scrambling to recoup that payday. The problems don't end there.

By JAMAL THALJI

© St. Petersburg Times,
published September 22, 2001

So far, everything has gone as Florida A&M coach Billy Joe planned. On the field, that is.

The Rattlers (2-0) are undefeated and ranked No. 9 in the Sports Network Division I-AA poll and No. 2 in the Sheridan poll.

The new running dimension Joe added to the pass-happy Gulf Coast Offense is working fine. Senior O.J. Marchbanks leads the new "groundhogs" core of backs with 116 rushing yards and 5.8 per carry.

Quarterback Quinn Gray is performing as a fifth-year senior should, throwing for 561 yards and five touchdowns and running in two scores. The Rattlers defense has bent considerably, giving up 372 rushing yards in two games, but has allowed no touchdowns in the past six quarters.

So, FAMU is ready for today's Atlanta Classic against Tennessee State in the Georgia Dome.

But off the field, the program's future is far more uncertain, for Joe faces many challenges.

Joe has to recruit in a state saturated by college football.

"No question about it, it's going to make it extremely difficult for FAMU," he said. "A lot of those football players they just want to play at the best level that they can possibly play, and it may even be a team we can beat, but they still want to go Division I-A.

"I remember when we could recruit in South Florida's (area), and we can't do that now. They want the kids, they'll get them. Central Florida, the same thing. If they want them, they'll get them."

So where will he find the players to bring FAMU another black college national championship? Another I-AA national title?

Joe said the Rattlers are dependent on alumni directing athletes their way; on transfers who just didn't pan out at the Division I-A level; and junior colleges.

The one thing Joe is certain of is FAMU cannot compete with Division I-A for recruits.

"I tell our coaches, if you find a high school kid that's entertaining an offer from a Division I-A school, forget it," Joe said. "We don't have the time or money to compete with that, so we have to back off."

The pressure on Joe also extends beyond the field. At FAMU, the team is one of the school's main economic engines, and funds not just the athletic program, but helps out the famous Marching 100 band and other university programs as well.

FAMU's athletic budget faces a six-figure shortfall because of last week's scrapped game. The organizers of the canceled Riverfront Classic, which pitted FAMU against Grambling at Cincinnati, had promised a $400,000 payday.

The real payoff probably wouldn't have been that much anyway, but FAMU still needs to plug that fiscal hole.

Like many schools, FAMU is desperately trying to recoup that 11th game and play it Nov. 24. The NCAA pushed the Division I-AA playoffs back a week to Dec. 1 to help. So Joe might have to take on a Division I-A foe before the I-AA playoffs.

Financial reasons are why FAMU is scheduled to play I-A powerhouse Miami in 2002 -- the school hopes to make about $500,000 -- and must be open-minded about accepting other such paydays in the future.

"We take care of everybody in the program," Joe said. "(Football) is the goose that lays the golden egg."

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