Tallahassee, FL – On top of wet field turf and under a cloud of cigar smoke, FAMU football celebrated its first-ever SWAC Championship and bid to the Celebration Bowl. More than 14,000 fans showed up despite heavy rain prior to and during the game as well as several lightning delays.
It was both a quick rise, and a long-time coming for FAMU – if that makes sense.
FAMU’s first SWAC title was won on its home field less than three-and-a-half years after it took its talents from the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference to the Southwestern Athletic Conference. That move effectively shifted the futures of both leagues as Bethune-Cookman followed FAMU to the SWAC, leaving the MEAC with just six football member schools when the moves became official in July 2021.
SWAC Commissioner Dr. Charles McClelland told HBCU Gameday’s Vaughan Wilson he was certain the SWAC was getting a jewel in FAMU, and Saturday’s win was the culmination of that hunch.
“There was never a question as to whether or not that was the right decision to invite Florida A&M,” McClelland said. “Great band, great fans, great administration, great culture, great everything. And when you really look at it, they fit perfectly with what we do.”
A soaked but elated FAMU head coach Willie Simmons recalled the decision to switch conferences and the reaction to it leaving the MEAC for the SWAC.
“We had a lot of success in that league. There were a lot of people that said we weren’t built for the SWAC or it would take us a long time to get it done,” Simmons said. “To be here in this moment three years later, having a 23-2 conference record during that time is a testament to these guys, their hard work, their commitment to excellence and their sacrifices and just them wanting to prove they’re one of the best teams in America.”
FAMU now sets its sights on Atlanta, where it will look to end a five-game losing streak for the SWAC to the MEAC. McClelland made it clear that the SWAC is counting on FAMU to get the job done when it faces Howard University on Dec. 16.
“We understand that the SWAC championship is extremely, extremely important, McClelland said. “But we put a new mandate out there. The Celebration Bowl has to be won by the Southwestern Athletic Conference, and we’re looking to Florida A&M to turn that trajectory around so we can start winning that ball game.”
Like it or not, FAMU is not only SWAC – it is the SWAC Champion. And it’s also now the league’s hope to end its dreadful streak to the bullying the MEAC has done to the SWAC in HBCU football’s biggest game.