2023 Florida A&M Rattlers football team

The 2023 Florida A&M Rattlers football team represented Florida A&M University as a member of the East Division of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) during the 2023 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by fifth-year head coach Willie Simmons, the Rattlers played home games at Bragg Memorial Stadium in Tallahassee, Florida. The Florida A&M Rattlers football team drew an average home attendance of 17,616 in 2023.

2023 Florida A&M Rattlers football
Black college national champion Celebration Bowl champion SWAC champion SWAC East Division champion
SWAC Championship Game, W 35–14 vs. Prairie View A&M
Celebration Bowl, W 30–26 vs. Howard
Conference	Southwestern Athletic Conference
Division	East Division
Ranking
STATS	No. 10
FCS Coaches	No. 5
Record	12–1 (8–0 SWAC)
Head coach	Willie Simmons (5th season)
Offensive coordinator	Joseph Henry (2nd season)
Co-defensive coordinator	Brandon Sharp (3rd season)
Co-defensive coordinator	Ryan Smith (4th season)
Home stadium	Bragg Memorial Stadium

2023 Southwestern Athletic Conference football standings

	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
East Division
No. 11 Florida A&M xy$		8	–	0					12	–	1
Alabama State		5	–	3					7	–	4
Jackson State		5	–	3					7	–	4
Alabama A&M		3	–	5					5	–	6
Bethune–Cookman		2	–	6					3	–	8
Mississippi Valley State		1	–	7					1	–	10
West Division
Prairie View A&M xy		6	–	2					6	–	6
Alcorn State x		6	–	2					7	–	4
Southern		5	–	3					6	–	5
Grambling State		4	–	4					5	–	6
Texas Southern		2	–	6					3	–	8
Arkansas–Pine Bluff		1	–	7					2	–	9
Championship: Florida A&M 35, Prairie View A&M 14
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Rankings from STATS Poll

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 3	3:00 p.m.	vs. Jackson State		Hard Rock Stadium Miami Gardens, FL (Orange Blossom Classic)	ESPN	W 28–10	24,967
September 9	7:00 p.m.	at South Florida*	No. 23	Raymond James Stadium Tampa, FL	ESPN+	L 24–38	36,495
September 16	6:00 p.m.	West Florida*	No. 23	Bragg Memorial Stadium Tallahassee, FL	HBCU Go	W 31–10	17,953
September 23	6:00 p.m.	Alabama State	No. 22	Bragg Memorial Stadium Tallahassee, FL	ESPN+	W 23–10	18,858
September 30	7:00 p.m.	at Mississippi Valley State	No. 20	Rice–Totten Stadium Itta Bena, MS	YouTube	W 31–7	1,689
October 7	7:00 p.m.	at Southern	No. 19	Ace W. Mumford Stadium Baton Rouge, LA	ESPNU	W 26–19	17,174
October 21	8:00 p.m.	at Texas Southern	No. 19	Shell Energy Stadium Houston, TX	ESPN+	W 31–21	8,956
October 28	4:00 p.m.	Prairie View A&M	No. 16	Bragg Memorial Stadium Tallahassee, FL	ESPNU	W 45–7	22,338
November 4	2:00 p.m.	at Alabama A&M	No. 15	Louis Crews Stadium Huntsville, AL	ESPN+	W 42–28	16,179
November 11	6:00 p.m.	Lincoln (CA)*	No. 13	Bragg Memorial Stadium Tallahassee, FL	Rattlers+	W 28–0	11,314
November 18	3:30 p.m.	vs. Bethune–Cookman	No. 11	Camping World Stadium Orlando, FL (Florida Classic)	ESPNU	W 24–7	56,227
December 2	4:00 p.m.	Prairie View A&M*	No. 10	Bragg Memorial Stadium Tallahassee, FL (SWAC Championship)	ESPN2	W 35–14	14,628
December 16	12:00 p.m.	vs. Howard	No. 10	Mercedes-Benz Stadium Atlanta, GA (Celebration Bowl)	ABC	W 30–26	41,108
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from STATS Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

Rankings

Further information: 2023 NCAA Division I FCS football rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
RV = Received votes т = Tied with team above or below

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	Final
STATS	RV	23	23	22	20	19	18	19	16	15	13T	11	10
Coaches	25	21	24	23	18	16	16	18	14	13T	9	7	5