2024 Outlook: Can FAMU football's 'Dark Cloud Defense' remain as one of the nation's best?
The ‘Dark Cloud Defense’ is Florida A&M football’s backbone.
In recent years, the Rattlers’ defense has finished near the top of the Football Championship Subdivision’s statistical rankings.
For example, FAMU had the second-best total defense in the FCS on the way to winning the 2023 Black College Football National Championship.
However, this season, FAMU’s defense is under the leadership of Milton Patterson, who was promoted from defensive line coach to defensive coordinator. Patterson has been on FAMU’s staff since 2021 and replaces Ryan Smith, now Murray State’s defensive coordinator.
Behind Patterson is FAMU’s defensive assistant coaches Casey Walker Sr. (defensive line) and Andre Pope (defensive backs).
Alongside his defensive coordinator role, Patterson has the dual responsibility of coaching FAMU’s linebackers.
FAMU head coach James Colzie III coaches the Rattlers cornerbacks.
Here’s a preview of the Rattlers’ ‘Dark Cloud Defense' when FAMU opens its 2024 football season against Norfolk State in Atlanta’s MEAC/SWAC Challenge on Aug. 24.
FAMU football's defensive line has talent that can frustrate offenses
FAMU typically has one of the most disruptive defensive lines in the nation.
Last season, the Rattlers finished third in the FCS for tackles for loss and 10th in team sacks.
One key player returning to FAMU’s four-man front is Allen Smith Jr., named to the Preseason All-Southwestern Athletic Conference Second Team. Smith, a hybrid edge rusher and linebacker, tallied 27 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, two fumble recoveries, and a fumble recovery in 2023.
Also back for the Rattlers is James Ash, who HERO Sports deems the SWAC’s top returning interior defensive lineman. Ash finished 2023 with 32 tackles, six tackles for loss and an interception.
FAMU also explored the recruiting trail to bring in new defensive linemen, especially after losing All-SWAC performers Gentle Hunt, who now plays for the Illinois Fighting Illini, and Anthony Dunn Jr., who transferred to Toledo.
The Rattlers picked up Clyde Pinder Jr., a transfer with Football Bowl Subdivision experience at North Carolina and South Florida. A 2020 All-American Bowl selection in high school, Pinder comes to FAMU from Copiah-Lincoln Community College.
The Rattlers also got signings from defensive lineman Cameron Donald, formerly a rotational player at Kennesaw State, and Davion Westmoreland from Kansas.
FAMU football's linebacker group will look a little different
FAMU has a significant void to fill at linebacker.
The Rattlers lost both starters of their two-man set.
SWAC Defensive Player of the Year Isaiah Major graduated, and All-SWAC performer Johnny Chaney Jr. transferred to play for the Colorado Buffaloes.
FAMU’s most game-experienced returning linebacker is Aric Horne. Last season, Horne was a rotational piece for the Rattlers, appearing in nine games and tallying 10 tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss.
Through the transfer portal, the Rattlers landed Jerome Nichols from Michigan. Nichols was on the Wolverines’ 2023-2024 national championship team. Colzie described Nichols as a “big, bruising linebacker who can run” at SWAC Media Day.
Joining FAMU’s linebacker room is Brian Norris Jr., who appeared in 34 games at USF from 2019 to 2024. Norris, explained as an “athletic linebacker” by Colzie, notched 47 tackles, a sack, and a forced fumble while playing for the USF Bulls.
The Rattlers also picked up a Phil Steele All-SWAC selection, Jayren Fox, from Mississippi Valley State to bolster their linebacker corps. Fox picked up 180 tackles, 19 tackles for loss, four sacks, three pass deflections, and two forced fumbles while playing for the Delta Devils from 2020 to 2023.
FAMU football's defensive backs loses a lot, but returns a lot
During the 2023 season, FAMU held FCS rankings of first in defensive pass efficiency, fourth in defensive interceptions, and eighth in pass defense.
Though FAMU’s defensive backs had losses, such as All-SWAC performers Eric Smith and Javan Morgan to graduation and Lovie Jenkins to the transfer portal, the Rattlers still have a respectable core returning.
Kendall Bohler headlines FAMU’s five-man set of defensive backs. He garnered Preseason All-SWAC First Team honors and was named the FCS’ seventh-best returner at the position.
Colzie has worked closely with Bohler for the last two seasons and said his player is someone NFL scouts “are always talking about.” In 2023, Bohler earned Boxtorow HBCU All-American honors after collecting 39 tackles, 15 pass deflections, and one interception that helped FAMU’s comeback victory over Howard in last December’s Celebration Bowl.
FAMU defensive back Deco Wilson also earned All-SWAC Preseason First Team honors. In 2023, Wilson was a key player down the stretch for the Rattlers, finishing the season with 39 tackles, four pass deflections, and three interceptions.
Wilson’s three interceptions came in FAMU’s final four games in 2023, including one apiece in the SWAC Championship and Celebration Bowl.
Other returning Rattlers defensive backs who could take the next step are Robert Glanton, Jalen Glaze, and Andre Powell, who snagged two interceptions during FAMU’s spring football game in April.
FAMU’s defensive back transfers are Demorie Tate, a former five-star prospect who began his college football career at Florida State, Simion Hines, a key contributor to Louisiana-Monroe’s defense in 2023, and Jameel Sanders from USF.
Florida A&M Rattlers 2024 Football Schedule
Aug. 24 vs. Norfolk State in MEAC/SWAC Challenge, Atlanta* at 7:30 p.m., ABC
Aug. 31 vs. South Carolina State, 6 p.m., ESPN+
Sept. 7 at Miami, 6 p.m., ACC Network
Sept. 21 at Troy, 7 p.m. Eastern Time, ESPN+
Sept. 28 vs. Alabama A&M, 6 p.m., ESPN+
Oct. 5 at Alabama State, 3 p.m. Eastern Time, ESPN+
Oct. 19 at Jackson State, 3:30 p.m. Eastern Time, ESPN Network
Oct. 26 vs. Southern, 7 p.m., ESPN Network
Nov. 2 vs. Texas Southern (HOMECOMING), 4 p.m., ESPN+
Nov. 9 at Prairie View A&M, 3 p.m. Eastern Time, ESPN+
Nov. 16 vs. Mississippi Valley State, 1 p.m., HBCU GO
Nov. 23 vs. Bethune-Cookman in Florida Classic, Orlando*, 3:30 p.m., ESPN Network
Nov. 30: FCS Playoffs Begin
Dec. 7: SWAC Championship, LOCATION/TEAMS TBA, ESPN2
Dec. 14: Celebration Bowl, Atlanta*, TEAMS TBA, 12 p.m., ABC
BOLD = SWAC
* = Neutral Site
Gerald Thomas, III covers Florida A&M University Athletics for the Tallahassee Democrat. Contact him via email at gdthomas@tallahassee.com or on the app formerly known as Twitter @3peatgee.
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This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: What's the 2024 outlook for FAMU football's 'Dark Cloud Defense?'
