Florida A&M stayed in-house for its next head coach with the Rattlers naming James Colzie III as the successor to Willie Simmons. Simmons left FAMU on January 1 to take the running backs coaching position at Duke.
Colzie joined FAMU in 2022, was promoted to associate head coach in 2023, and was named the interim head coach after Simmons’ departure. Prior to joining the Rattlers, Colzie was the head coach at Saint Mary’s University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada from 2016 through 2021. He compiled an 18-20 record in five seasons according to SMU’s coaching records page (there were multiple forfeits by SMU and its opponents during his tenure with FAMU reporting a 23-19 overall record for Colzie).
Colzie has additional experience within Canada and in the US. He was an assistant coach at the University of British Columbia and Simon Fraser (British Columbia) as well as Southern Arkansas, Valdosta State, and West Georgia. Colzie played collegiately at Florida State and later coached there from 2004 through 2006.
Colzie will be tasked with continuing the recent success of the FAMU football program. The Rattlers went 45-13 in five seasons under Simmons, which culminated with a 12-1 record in 2023, a win in the Celebration Bowl, and the school being crowned Black College National Champions.
Photo Credit to Saint Mary’s University Halifax Athletics
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