By Kendrick Marshall
HBCU Sports
ATLANTA — The third pass Daniel Richardson threw as the newly-minted Florida A&M quarterback was a long looping toss in the vicinity of wide receiver Jalen Rogers, who was surrounded by three Norfolk State defenders.
The football, however, fell innocently out of harm’s way. But the result appeared to be an early reminder that the transfer quarterback hadn’t quite got the hang of it all just yet.
Richardson — with all his FBS experience at Central Michigan and Florida Atlantic — was 1 of 3 for 10 passing yards in six snaps.
To make matters worse, the Florida A&M defense, which had carried the team in the Celebration Bowl championship run last season, was being bullied on the ground for 145 yards in the first quarter alone and had surrendered the game’s first 14 points.
The first 10 minutes of the James Colzie era featured the first of many tests. These would try the mettle of the first-year coach, his hand-picked quarterback, and his defense to see what they were made of.
Richardson, who had thrown for more than 7,000 yards in his collegiate career before transferring to Florida A&M, responded.
After the slow start, the Miami, Florida native threw for 286 yards and three touchdowns. Senior wide receiver Jamari Gassett had a breakout game of his own, catching eight passes for 110 yards and two scores.
The Rattlers defense and special teams stepped up to stop a late-fourth quarter two-point conversion attempt in a 24-23 win over Norfolk State in Atlanta’s MEAC/SWAC Challenge on Saturday night in front of 22,210 at Center Parc Stadium.
For Norfolk State, Jaden Daniels threw for 142 yards on nine passing attempts. He also scored a rushing TD. Kavon King rushed for 146 yards and two touchdowns.
