Norfolk State Spartans Welcome Florida A&M Rattlers to Dick Price Stadium for Homecoming

By Mark Sutton Photography

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NORFOLK, Virginia - Norfolk State hosts Florida A&M this Saturday for the Spartans' 2013 Homecoming game. Kickoff is at 2 p.m. at Dick Price Stadium.

The Spartans will be looking to move over .500 in MEAC play against the Rattlers, a team NSU has not faced since 2010.

SCOUTING THE SPARTANS
NSU dropped its third straight game in dramatic fashion last Saturday, falling to cross-town foe Old Dominion, 27-24. The Monarchs' Jarod Brown kicked the game-winning 24-yard field goal as time expired to cap a thriller. The Spartans rallied from a 17-3 second-quarter deficit by scoring 21 unanswered. Malik Stokes – the third Spartan quarterback to see action against ODU – threw a touchdown pass and ran for another to help NSU take a 24-17 lead early in the fourth. But ODU scored the game's final 10 points to spoil NSU's upset bid. Stokes passed for 87 yards and rushed for 38 while accounting for two touchdowns. Rolandan Finch, the MEAC's leader in total rushing yards, rushed for 97 and added 36 receiving yards.

Finch has a conference-best 687 rushing yards and is second in the league at 85.9 rushing yards per game. He also ranks third in the MEAC with 105.4 all-purpose yards per game. Tight end Joseph Hawkins is seventh in the MEAC with 29 receptions (3.6 per game). After recording his second straight double-digit tackle game with 11 last week against ODU, junior linebacker Marcell Coke is now tied for sixth in the MEAC with 76 tackles. Sophomore linebacker/end Deon King continues to pace the MEAC and ranks second in the nation with 15.5 tackles for loss.



SCOUTING THE RATTLERS
Florida A&M lost its second straight ballgame last Saturday in a 20-13 overtime decision to North Carolina A&T in Tallahassee. Tarik Cohen ran for 210 yards and three touchdowns for N.C. A&T, including the game-winning 8-yard scoring run in overtime. It appeared as though the Rattlers were going to pull out the win in a low-scoring affair when Damien Fleming found Dewayne Harvey on an 8-yard TD pass with 19 seconds remaining, capping a 96-yard scoring drive. That tied the game at 13-all, but FAMU's Chase Varnadore missed the extra point, sending the game into overtime. The Aggies got the ball first in OT and scored on Cohen's third TD. FAMU had the chance to answer, but Fleming was intercepted by Isaiah Martin to end the game.

The Rattlers were outgained 274-179, including 256-57 on the ground. FAMU's other touchdown came on Shaun Ward's 17-yard interception return in the third quarter.

Like NSU, the Rattlers have struggled on offense this year. Fleming, the MEAC Preseason Co-Offensive Player of the Year, is averaging just 112 yards per game through the air and has been intercepted 12 times. FAMU is last in the MEAC in total offense, averaging just 218.8 yards per game.

THE SERIES
• FAMU leads the series with NSU 12-1. The Spartans' only win was a 33-27 victory at FAMU in 2007.
• The Rattlers are 6-0 against NSU all-time at Dick Price Stadium.
• FAMU's last four wins at NSU have been by a total of 13 points.



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