Hampton Pirates 25, Florida A&M Rattlers 0

Hampton University Pirates first year head coach Donovan Rose clobbers FAMU Rattlers FCS Playoffs hopes with 25-0 stomping.

Former HU coach handed first career shutout loss

HAMPTON - Rarely in 27 years as a head coach has Joe Taylor been on the wrong end of such domination. Playing with an outside chance of winning the MEAC and making the playoffs, Florida A&M was handed a 25-0 spanking by Hampton University. Afterward, Taylor showed his usual class. And even a sense of humor. "Well," he said in the interview room, "this is not a good welcoming home." No, it wasn't — at least, not on the field. The man who won 136 games for the Pirates from 1992 through 2007 went through a brutal afternoon.

As flat and uninspired as the Rattlers looked Saturday at Armstrong Stadium, that's how revved up and sharp the Pirates looked. The result left FAMU with its first shutout loss since 1988 — and Taylor with his first ever. "I'm not surprised," Taylor said about the Pirates' energy. "I told the team they'd be energized for some obvious reasons. Take your hat off to them, because they played well." Conspicuously absent from HU's inaugural Hall of Fame class, Taylor made his first trip to Armstrong's opposing sideline since 1989, when he was coaching at Virginia Union. He was 6-3 vs. the Pirates, including a 45-28 win last year in Tallahassee.

Photo Gallery: FAMU falls to Hampton, 25-0

Much better this time for HU offensive coordinator

Without checking to be certain, we can safely say that Terry Beauford feels a lot better today than on the final day of the 1988 season. Back then, he was an offensive lineman for Florida A&M. And the Rattlers were blanked that day 25-0 by Bethune-Cookman. Now, Beauford is the offensive coordinator at Hampton University. And on Saturday, his Pirates shut out his alma mater ... by the same 25-0 score. His offense had a season-high 464 yards.

If you play a game and nobody sees it ...
HU's most complete performance of the season was seen by only 1,931 fans, which left nearly 15,000 empty seats at Armstrong Stadium. For the season, the Pirates' average attendance is 5,172. If that figure holds — there is one home game remaining — it would be the worst since 1989. The largest attendance this season was 7,417 for the opener.

Hampton Nearly Perfect in Big Win

HAMPTON — All season long, Hampton University football coach Donovan Rose saw flashes here and there. One game, the offense looked decent. One game, the defense did. But never, not throughout the first nine weeks of the season, had the Pirates put it all together. Saturday afternoon, on a soggy track with emotions running high, they did. Behind a power running game that two quarterbacks spearheaded and a defense that allowed virtually nothing all day, Hampton spoiled Joe Taylor's homecoming with a 25-0 win over Florida A&M at Armstrong Stadium.

To say it was the Pirates' best day this year would be unnecessary. "I told the guys, we've had spurts," Rose said. "But we never had a game where everybody played well. We wanted to do this against a team like (FAMU). They have a great program, and this is something to build from. "To me, it wasn't about (FAMU). I know they probably feel disappointed because this probably took them out of the playoff hunt. But it was about us. Our guys have been up and down all year. I told them to relax and have fun with it."

Attendance: 1,931@Armstrong Stadium, Hampton, VA

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