FAMU football coach James Colzie III is recruiting with a purpose for 2025, future seasons

• FAMU football coach James Colzie III is actively recruiting for the 2025 season, focusing on high school prospects due to a large graduating senior class.
• The Rattlers have addressed key roster needs through recruiting and the transfer portal, particularly at quarterback and defensive line.
• Colzie aims to replicate the successful team composition of the 2023 Black College National Championship team.
• The team is currently engaged in organized team activities (OTAs) with a mix of returning players and newcomers.
• FAMU’s 2025 season opens against Howard in the Orange Blossom Classic on August 30.

Florida A&M football has wrapped up most of its recruiting for the upcoming 2025 season.

In the past weeks, head coach James Colzie III and his Rattlers football staff have been on a recruiting tour, assessing talent and extending offers to prospects.

Stops included South Florida, South Georgia, Atlanta, Kansas, Tallahassee, and others.

“My miles have been picking up. Getting some perks,” Colzie told the Tallahassee Democrat with a chuckle. “It’s been great traveling around and being the head football coach at Florida A&M.”

FAMU football will have a large contingency of seniors this season.

So, Colzie has recruited with foresight, emphasizing offering high school prospects the opportunity to join the Rattlers after graduation. For example, FAMU recently offered quarterback Taylor Jacobs Jr., who will graduate from Tallahassee’s Lincoln High School in 2026.

“We’re sitting at about 32-33 seniors for this upcoming season. In a way, that’s great. We’re an older team and mature,” Colzie said. “When you think of recruiting, you must be a year ahead. I think it allows us to bring in some high school guys to help lay some foundation to continue building for the future.”

The NCAA’s recruiting dead period was from Sunday, May 25, until Wednesday, May 28, meaning coaches couldn’t make in-person, off-campus recruiting contacts or evaluations or permit official or unofficial visits from prospects.

FAMU immediately picked up its recruiting efforts after the dead period. On Thursday, May 29, the Rattlers got a commitment from Jett Peddy, an all-conference quarterback from Long Beach City College.

“You guys have an idea of what we needed to address. And for the most part, I think we have,” Colzie said. “But we’re still not done. We still have some guys we’ll bring in after the dead period, and we’ll bring in another couple of guys next weekend. Hopefully, then we’re done.”

FAMU football coach James Colzie III to put final touches on 2025 team through recruiting

This offseason, the Rattlers have lost All-Southwestern Athletic Conference performers in tight end Koby Gross and defensive tackle James Ash to the NCAA Transfer Portal.

Both left FAMU, a Football Championship Subdivision team, for Football Bowl Subdivision schools. Gross went to Ball State, and Ash now plays for Auburn.

Some former FAMU football players were encouraged to transfer for reasons such as fixing the culture or attempting to build the best roster possible.

“Those are some tough conversations and decisions you must make,” Colzie said. “But at the end of the day, you’re still trying to make sure you have the best football team for this campus and university. We were able to do that. As we go through recruiting and being able to connect, a lot of those guys we brought in were to fill holes. They’ve done a good job up to this point.”

As summer recruiting starts for FAMU, Colzie is envisioning what he wants the 2025 Rattlers team to look like. The second-year head coach said FAMU football’s 2023 team that won the Black College National Championship is the ideal makeup for success. Colzie was the assistant head coach and cornerbacks coach that year.

That means Colzie is looking to strengthen the defensive line, especially with Ash’s departure for Auburn.

“That’s tough. Maybe it’s not one guy this time. Maybe it’s two,” Colzie said of replacing Ash.

“I think you’re always trying to find interior defensive linemen. I looked at our 2023 team. We didn’t have a bunch of superstars, but we had a bunch of guys that were big, tough, and could fly around. We got to get ourselves back to that. I think we’ve done that with some of the guys we currently have here and a couple of guys we did bring in. We will go as far as our defensive and offensive line goes.”

FAMU football returners, newcomers meshing well during organized team activities

The Rattlers are currently amidst organized team activities during FAMU’s Summer A semester.

Eighty-eight players are on campus, and 95-96 percent of the FAMU football team will be on campus during Summer B, Colzie says.

It’s been constant depth chart movement. Transfer quarterback RJ Johnson III, offensive lineman Gozy Okeke, and defensive lineman DJ Jones have performed well during FAMU’s OTAs.

Returning players like All-SWAC offensive linemen Charles Davis and Ashton Grable, wide receiver Goldie Lawrence, and defensive linemen Nick Dimitris, Antonio Camon, and linebacker Brian Norris Jr. have done well.

And there are others.

“Some of those guys we’ve picked up in the portal have surprisingly done some good things already,” Colzie said. “You talk about the portal guys and the transfers you brought in, but you can’t forget about the guys you already have that are here.”

FAMU football opens its season versus the Howard Bison on Saturday, Aug. 30, in Miami’s Orange Blossom Classic. The Rattlers will return from the 2024 season that saw them finish 7-5, the program’s lowest win total since 2018.

“We’ve kind of built them up and made them a little bit upset of what some people may be saying or thinking,” Colzie said of motivating his players as they prepare for the 2025 season.

“They got a little chip on their shoulder. They’re excited to get ready to play Howard, but they know there are steps before we get to Howard. It starts in the weight room, continues on the field in our OTAs, and how we install as a coaching staff. I’m happy with where we are, but I’m not. I know we’re nowhere near a finished product.”

Florida A&M Football 2025 Schedule

• Week 1: Saturday, Aug. 30 ― vs. Howard (Orange Blossom Classic at Miami Garden’s Hard Rock Stadium), 4 p.m., ESPNU
• Week 2: Saturday, Sept. 6 ― at Florida Atlantic, 6 p.m., ESPN Plus
• Week 3: Saturday, Sept. 13 ― vs. Albany State, 6 p.m.
• Week 4: BYE/OPEN WEEK
• Week 5: Saturday, Sept. 27 ― vs. Alabama State (SWAC)
• Week 6: Saturday, Oct. 4 ― at Mississippi Valley State (SWAC), 3 p.m.
• Week 7: Saturday, Oct. 11 ― vs. North Carolina Central
• Week 8: Saturday, Oct. 18 ― vs. Alcorn State (SWAC/Homecoming)
• Week 9: Saturday, Oct. 25 ― at Southern (SWAC)
• Week 10: Saturday, Nov. 1 ― vs. Jackson State (SWAC)
• Week 11: Saturday, Nov. 8 ― at Arkansas-Pine Bluff (SWAC), 3 p.m
• Week 12: Saturday, Nov. 15 ― at Alabama A&M (SWAC)
• Week 13: Saturday, Nov. 22 ― vs. Bethune-Cookman (SWAC/Florida Classic at Orlando’s Camping World Stadium)
• Saturday, Nov. 29 ― NCAA FCS Playoffs Begin (If Necessary)
• Saturday, Dec. 6 ― SWAC Championship Game (If Necessary)
• Saturday, Dec. 13 ― Celebration Bowl at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium (If Necessary)
• Monday, Jan. 5, 2026 ― NCAA FCS National Championship Game at Nashville’s FirstBank Stadium (If Necessary)

All times listed are in Eastern Standard Time.

Gerald Thomas, III is a multi-time award-winning journalist for his coverage of the Florida A&M Rattlers at the Tallahassee Democrat.

Follow his award-winning coverage on RattlerNews.com and contact him via email at GDThomas@Tallahassee.com or on the app formerly known as Twitter @3peatgee.