BIRMINGHAM, Ala. —— The Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) has announced the individual honors, and three FAMU Rattlers continue to receive honors as Willie Simmons is named Coach of the Year, Jeremy Moussa is named Player of the Year, and Isaiah Major is named Defensive Player of the Year.
“No two guys deserve to be named SWAC Players of the Year than Jeremy Moussa and Isaiah Major,” said Simmons. “They have been the unquestioned leaders of their respective sides of the ball the past two seasons and have been two of the most productive players in the country! They are also up for National Player of the Year Awards because of their commitment to excellence in everything they do on and off the field.”
Willie Simmons | Coach of the Year
Under Simmons’ leadership this season, FAMU finished the regular season with its highest national ranking since 1998 at five and had their first ten-win season since 1999. Also, the Rattlers possess the nation’s number-one total defense. The Rattlers’ defense also finished the season ranked top-19 in 11 categories.
Defensive Rankings (Top-19)
• 19th – Passing Yards Allowed
• 16th – 1st Down Defense
• 8th – Red Zone Defense
• 6th – Sacks
• 4th – Defensive Touchdowns
• 3rd – Passing Efficiency Defense
• 2nd – 3rd Down Defense
• 2nd – Rushing Defense
• 2 – Scoring Defense
• 1st – Tackles for Loss
• 1st – Total Defense
The Rattlers also ranked top-30 in other statistical categories, including punt return defense (30th), kickoff return defense (28th), scoring offense (27th), passing yards per completion (27th), passes intercepted (26th), time of possession (26th), sacks allowed (25th), blocked punts (18th), and punt returns (14th).
The Rattlers continued to make history this season after going 8-0 in the SWAC and winning their first SWAC East Championship. The Rattlers will host their first-ever SWAC Championship Game on December 2 versus Prairie View A&M. Since joining the SWAC, they have possessed the best conference record with a 22-2 record in three seasons. The Rattlers also possess the nation’s second-longest winning streak (9 games), home game winning streak (19 games), and conference game winning streak (15 games).
Jeremy Moussa | Player of the Year
Moussa led the Rattlers’ offense to the 27th-best scoring offense in the nation. Moussa finished the season with 2,416 yards, 18 passing touchdowns, and one rushing touchdown in ten games. Moussa finished the season nationally ranked in yards per completion (19th), passing yards per game (20th), passing yards (27th), and passing touchdowns (29th). Moussa led the SWAC in all those categories except yards per completion.
Moussa had two 300+ passing yards this game, including a career-high 374 yards at South Florida. Moussa also threw for 325 yards at Southern. Moussa also had a multi-touchdown game seven times, including three touchdown games versus West Florida, Prairie View A&M, and at Texas Southern.
Isaiah Major | Defensive Player of the Year
Major led the FAMU Dark Cloud Defense with 94 total tackles, 55 solo tackles, and 11.5 tackles for loss. Major also added four quarterback hurries, two sacks, two pass breakups, a fumble recovery, and a pick-six this season. Major earned SWAC Defensive Player of the Week and was honorable mention National Defensive Player of the Week, following his 11 tackles, three tackles for loss, and two sacks performance at South Florida.
Major recorded a season-high 12 tackles and the game-sealing pick-six versus Alabama State. Major also had two or more tackles for loss in three games, including three at South Florida and Mississippi Valley State.
Major is currently ranked 23rd in the nation in solo tackles per game (5), 39th in total tackles per game (8.5), and 57th in tackles for loss per game (1.05).