SAVANNAH, Ga. - Savannah State University football coach Steve Davenport is not guaranteeing a victory over Florida A&M University on Saturday night in Tallahassee, Fla., but he said he feels confident about the Tigers' chances.
 
“We've got our hands full but I feel good about our skill positions,” Davenport said. “We match up a little bit better with these guys.”
 
“I thought North Carolina Central's and Howard's (offensive and defensive) lines were pretty good. I thought the same about Morgan (State). I knew they'd be physical. But I think we match up a little bit better against FAMU, and now we just have to go out and prove it.”
 
An SSU victory over FAMU would send shockwaves throughout the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, just as North Carolina Central's 40-10 victory over South Carolina State last Saturday caused jaws to drop throughout the MEAC.
 
SSU (0-5, 0-3) will play FAMU (2-4, 2-1) at 6 p.m. at Bragg Memorial Stadium. The game will be radio broadcast on WHCJ 90.3 FM.
 
“I had an unfortunate trip to Tallahassee here recently,” Davenport said, referring to SSU's 55-0 loss to Florida State University on Sept. 8. “But I've never been to Bragg Stadium. Obviously, FAMU football is historic. There have been some really quality football players there.”
 
FAMU is 4-0 in the series with SSU. The Rattlers beat the Tigers, 47-7, last season at T.A. Wright Stadium.
 
SSU is attempting to snap its 12-game losing streak, the longest in the Football Championship Subdivision. The Tigers are coming off a 45-6 loss to Morgan State last Saturday at T.A. Wright Stadium.
 
FAMU outlook
FAMU enters with a two-game losing streak. The Rattlers are coming off a 17-10 loss to Howard last Saturday in Washington, D.C. FAMU lost to Southern University, 21-14, on Sept. 29 in the Bank of America Atlanta Football Classic.
 
The Rattlers beat Delaware State, 24-22, on Sept. 22 in Dover, Del., and they beat Hampton, 44-20, on Sept. 15 in Tallahassee, Fla.
 
FAMU lost, 69-13, to Oklahoma on Sept. 8 in Norman, Okla., and the Rattlers lost, 17-14, to Tennessee State on Sept. 1 in Nashville, Tenn.
 
“They beat Del State by two, and lost to a really good Tennessee State team,” Davenport said. “They lost to Southern in the Georgia Dome, and it was a close game. They're a good football team. I don't think a lot separates the teams in the conference.
 
“Obviously, we've got a ways to go to get to the point where we're competing. Right now, we're only able to compete for a half of football, which we've got to get fixed. But I don't think we're as far away as people think, and I see us going in the right direction, even though the results aren't anywhere close to where we want them to be.”
 
Davenport said he expects FAMU coach Joe Taylor to continue using a passing attack.
 
“They're doing a lot more spread (offense) this year,” Davenport said of the Rattlers, who are No. 1 in the MEAC with 238.5 yards passing per game.
 
FAMU is led by quarterback Damien Fleming, a 6-foot-3, 180-pound sophomore from Jacksonville, Fla., who is 133-of-192 passing (69.3 percent) for 1,319 yards and 11 touchdowns. He has run 58 times for 109 yards without a touchdown.
 
SSU's secondary likely will be tested by FAMU wide receiver Travis Harvey, a 6-foot-2, 185-pound redshirt senior from Inglewood, Calif., who has 41 catches for 562 yards and seven touchdowns. Harvey has 100 yards or more receiving in four games this season. He caught four passes for a game-high 118-yards, including a 75-yard touchdown, against Oklahoma.
 
Wide receiver Lenworth Lennon, a 5-foot-10, 175-pound sophomore from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., has 31 catches for 278 yards and two touchdowns.
 
FAMU is ranked ninth out of 11 MEAC teams in rushing offense. The Rattlers average 101.5 yards rushing per game. Eddie Rocker, a 5-foot-8, 175-pound senior from Ocala, Fla., has carried 63 times for 254 yards without a touchdown. James Owens, a 5-foot-9, 180-pound redshirt junior from Apopka, Fla., has 39 carries for 242 yards and all three of the Rattlers' rushing touchdowns.
 
Defensively, FAMU linebacker Brandon Hepburn, a 6-foot-4, 235-pound senior from Pomona, N.Y., has a team-high 50 tackles, including five for minus-11 yards.
 
SSU's passing attack likely will be tested by FAMU defensive backs Jonathan Pillow, Devan Roberts and Marvin Ross, who have intercepted two passes apiece.
 
“Florida A&M is tremendously athletic and talented,” Davenport said.
 
Bostick to start at QB
SSU quarterback Antonio Bostick, who was injured in the third quarter against Morgan State and did not return to the game, will start against FAMU, Davenport said Thursday.
The 6-foot-1, 202-pound junior from Greensboro, Fla., said after the game that he believed he suffered a low left ankle sprain when he was sacked for a 5-yard loss. He walked on the sideline with the aid of crutches.
 
Bostick finished 11-of-22 passing for 112 yards. He was intercepted one time. He ran 15 times for 66 yards, both game highs, and a touchdown.
 
“Bostick is fine,” Davenport said. “It actually wasn't his ankle. It was his calf. But he's ready to go.”
 
WR Heyward a game-time decision
Wide receiver Simon Heyward, who suffered an ankle injury against Morgan State, will be a game-time decision, Davenport said.
 
“He's going to try to play,” Davenport said of Heyward, a 5-foot-11, 185-pound junior from Savannah's Beach High School.
 
Heyward leads SSU is receiving with 17 catches for 272 yards and two touchdowns.
 
WR Lackey out
Wide receiver Edward Lackey Jr. will not play against FAMU because of a back injury, Davenport said.
 
Lackey, a 6-foot-4, 195-pound junior from Dallas, Ga., has six catches for 41 yards.
 
 
QB Prunty to redshirt
Third-string quarterback Leon Prunty will be redshirted this season, Davenport said.
Prunty, a 6-foot-4, 220-pound freshman from Stockbridge, has been backing up Bostick and second-string QB Victorian Hardison, a 6-foot, 180-pound sophomore from Lovejoy.