ORLANDO- The biggest HBCU football event of the year will place a bow on the 2024 Bethune-Cookman football season as the Wildcats

The game will be broadcast live on ESPNU. Fans can catch the home radio call free on 1380 WELE Daytona Beach or at YouTube.com/CatEyeNetwork. Fans can also catch a brand-new episode of Hail Wildcats Radio premiering live one hour before kickoff. 



Saturday, Nov. 23
Opponent:  Florida A&M (5-5, 3-2 SWAC)
Time: 3:30 p.m. EST
Location: Orlando, Fla. | Camping World Stadium
Live Stats: https://bcuathletics.com/sidearmstats/football/summary
Watch: https://www.espn.com/watch/
Listen: https://wele1380thecat.com/
Tickets: https://floridaclassic.org/tickets/



A game-tying field goal attempt came up short at B-CU dropped the 2024 road finale to, 17-14, to Texas Southern, Saturday afternoon at Shell Energy Stadium. 

The afternoon opened on a strange note as B-CU deferred the coin toss to the second half, and a Cade Hechter squib kick turned into a six-yard loss that stranded the Tigers at their 18 to start the game.

Though both sides crossed into opponent territory on their opening drives, neither converted as the first quarter ended scoreless.

It was B-CU who went ahead first as Cam'Ron Ransom found Maleek Huggins for a 62-yard bomb to open the scoring with the Wildcats in front, 7-0. 

On the very next drive for Texas Southern, the Tigers ran only four plays as quarterback Jace Wilson was intercepted by Naim Lassiter at the Wildcat 19. Lassiter's returned his first pick as a Wildcat 45 yards down to the Tiger 36. 

The turnover did not come back to hurt the Tigers as a B-CU holding penalty cut the ensuing drive off at it knees before it could begin, and the Wildcats were forced to punt. 

The Wildcats had a chance to add to their lead as the half neared its end, but Hechter's 25-yarder missed wide left, and a 9-play, 61-yard drive went for naught and the two teams headed to the locker rooms.

After a quick drive out of the half for B-CU, Texas Southern tied up the ballgame with an 11-play, 84-yard, nearly six-minute drive culminating in an Athean Renfro touchdown run to make it 7-7. 

The Tigers added three more on a 27-yard field goal after a 35-yard Renfro rush set TSU up deep in B-CU territory. 

The two teams headed into the final frame all tied up before TSU worked another long drive - this time 10-plays, 90-yards, and four minutes off the clock. Another Renfro rushing score gave the Tigers the 17-7 advantage with just nine minutes to play. 

B-CU was not finished yet, as Ransom and the Wildcats marched down the field with help from two TSU penalties. After a 26-yard dart to Huggins brought the Cats to the TSU six-yard-line, Ransom found Lorenzo Jenkins for his second score in as many weeks to pull to within 17-14. 

With six minutes to play, the Wildcats forced a Tigers punt, taking over at their 19 with three to play. 

B-CU chipped away on 13 plays, creeping down to the TSU 37 as they set up for a 54-yard field goal with just eight seconds to play. Hechter's kick came up short as the Tigers held on for the 17-14 win. 



Under the direction of first-year head coach James Colzie III, Florida A&M is 5-5 on the season, and 3-2 in SWAC play. The defending SWAC and Celebration Bowl champions started the season with close wins over Norfolk State and South Carolina State before dropping back-to-back FBS games. The Rattlers opened SWAC 3-1, with their lone loss coming at the hands of Jackson State on the road. The last two weeks have seen a Rattler collapse to the tune of a 31-12 loss against reeling Prairie View A&M, and a 24-21 loss at the hands of Mississippi Valley State. The Delta Devils were previously winless on the year in 10 tries, but they rallied to hand FAMU its first home loss in 23 games at Bragg Memorial Stadium.

The Rattlers find themselves in the top half of the SWAC on both sides of the ball, averaging 26.3 points per game while allowing 22.8. Offensively, the Rattlers have been led by their passing game, which ranks second in the conference at 248 air yards per game with 15 passing touchdowns to 8 picks. Graduate quarterback Daniel Richardson, who has dealt with injuries down the home stretch of the season, leads the SWAC in passing yards per game (217), passing touchdowns (14), and completion percentage (72%), with six picks on the year. FAMU has struggled to run the ball, averaging only 141 yards per game on the ground with two scores.

FAMU has fielded the best passing defense in the league, allowing only five touchdowns in the air and 133 yards per game with six picks. Junior DB T.J. Huggins leads the Rattlers with a pair of interceptions on the season. The Rattlers have been far more vulnerable against the run, allowing 155 yards on the ground per game and eight touchdowns. Graduate defensive back Deco Wilson leads the Rattlers in tackles with 64. He also has 2.5 tackles for loss, a sack, and an interception. Junior linebacker Nay'Ron Jenkins has three sacks on the season.



RIVALRY RUNS DEEP
Four members of the Wildcat coaching staff have appeared in the Florida Classic as both players and coaches. Head Coach Raymond Woodie Jr, DB Coach Nick Collins, GM Jeff Fagan, Director of Recruiting Jean Dessein, and Equipment Manager Alvin Wyatt Jr. each made their mark in the historic rivalry. Three Wildcats have fathers who played in the event - Raymond Woodie III, Walter Simmons III, and Nichalas Rawls II.

JUST THE CLASSICS
Saturday's game at Camping World Stadium in Orlando marks the 44th annual Florida Classic after the game began back in 1978. B-CU heads into this year's historic rivalry with FAMU having lost three straight Classics - they had previously won nine straight from 2011-2019. The Wildcats' all-time record in the event is 19-24. 

WE'RE BREAKING UP
With still one game to play, CB Andrew Volmar has racked up 10 pass break ups on the year. He is the first Wildcat to cross double-digits in the statistic since James Monds recorded 11 back in 2007. Monds broke up 13 passes the year before in 2006.

CAM SHOW
Quarterback Cam'Ron Ransom heads into the final game of the season having completed 153 of 241 pass attempts. Should his 63.5% completion percentage hold or improve, he will finish the season with the best completion percentage by a B-CU QB with over 100 pass attempts since Quentin Williams finished the 2015 season at 67.7%.

THE BIG THREE
With the injury to OL Antuan Wells,  a start Saturday would wrap the 2024 season with only three Wildcats starting every game this season. A trio of juniors in center Christian Loving, corner Johnny Harris III, and defensive tackle Adrian Hall Jr. will have started all 12 games should their season trend hold.

IN THE BACKYARD
Six Wildcats set to compete in the 2024 Florida Classic hail from Orlando.

FREDERIQUE'S COME OUT AT NIGHT
B-CU punter Anthony Frederique has already made program history in 2024, breaking the all-time season punt yard total of 2,688 set by former B-CU Athletic Director, Lynn Thompson in 1978. With one game remaining on the season, he has averaged 43.21 yards per punt on 63 punts. That number would place him just short of at second-place in program history in punting average in a season - Thompson reached 43.3 yards per punt in both 1976 and 1978. Frederique would be just over a yard short of the program record in average punt yards on a season of 44.1, set by Clewis Wright all the way back in 1965. He also currently sits in fourth place in program history in total punts in a season - he would need nine in Saturday's game to break the single-season record (72, - Stacy O'Neal - 1994). 

SPREAD IT AROUND
Eight different Wildcats have caught touchdown passes this season. That is the highest number of unique receivers to find the endzone since 10 Wildcats caught touchdown passes in 2011.



Saturday marks the 78th meeting all-time in the historic rivalry. Florida A&M owns a 52-24-1 advantage in the series. Since the inception of the Florida Classic, the Rattlers lead, 19-24. FAMU has won three straight in the series - B-CU had won the previous nine in a row. The Rattlers defeated the Wildcats, 24-7, a year ago on their way to a 2023 Celebration Bowl victory. 


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