Florida A&M escapes with a Celebration Bowl victory
Jeremy Moussa overcame a frustrating first half to throw three fourth-quarter touchdown passes, including two to Kelvin Dean Jr., powering Florida A&M’s comeback past Howard 30-26 Saturday in the Celebration Bowl at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
Florida A&M (12-1), ranked 10th in the Stats Perform FCS Top 25 after its 10-1 regular season, closed with 11 consecutive wins. Moussa connected with Dean on scoring passes of 21 and 53 yards as the Rattlers recovered after trailing 14-0 in the first quarter and 16-10 to open the fourth.
Carson Hinton’s 26-yard picksix gave Howard (6-6) a 26-24 lead.
The Rattlers answered with a 38-yard, flea-flicker touchdown pass from Moussa to Jah-Marae Sheread to reclaim the advantage. Moussa handed the ball to running back Terrell Jennings, who pitched the ball back to the quarterback for the decisive touchdown.
Linebacker Isaiah Major’s interception, the third thrown by Howard quarterback Quinton Williams, with 1:45 remaining clinched the win for Florida A&M.
Jarrett Hunter and Kasey Hawthorne ran for touchdowns for the Bison, whose team includes MEAC Defensive Player of the Year Kenny Gallop Jr., a Churchland High graduate.
The Rattlers, former MEAC members coming off their first Southwestern Athletic Conference championship, gave their new league only its second win over the Mid-Eastern Athletic
Conference in eight Celebration Bowls. The game is considered by many to be the national championship game among Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).
Late Friday
Cortland 38, North Central 37:
Zac Boyes threw for 349 yards and five touchdowns and rushed for 123 yards, Cortland stopped a 2-point conversion attempt with 90 seconds remaining, and the Red Dragons beat defending champion North Central at Salem City Stadium for their first NCAA Division III championship.
Cortland (14-1), who routed previously unbeaten Randolph-Macon in Ashland on Dec. 9 and were playing in the Stagg Bowl for the first time in program history, handed North Central (14-1) its first loss since the 2021 championship game. The Cardinals, in their fourth straight title game, won the 2019 national title in addition to last year’s.
South Dakota State 59, Albany 0:
Mark Gronowski threw for three touchdowns, Isaiah Davis ran for two and Tucker Large returned a punt for a score — all in the first half — as defending national champion South Dakota State (14-0) rolled back into the FCS championship game with a rout in Brookings, South Dakota, over the final Coastal Athletic Association team left in the playoffs.
Top-seeded South Dakota State, on a 28-game winning streak, will play for the championship on Jan. 7 in Frisco, Texas, against Saturday’s North Dakota State-Montana winner.