Florida A&M to play at USF in 2021, at Miami in 2024 and 2026

By Kevin Kelley -

The Florida A&M Rattlers will play at the USF Bulls in 2021 and at the Miami Hurricanes in 2024 and 2026, FBSchedules.com has learned.

Copies of contracts for all three games were obtained from Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University via a state public records request.

Florida A&M will take on USF at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, on Sept. 18, 2021. USF will pay FAMU a $450,000 guarantee for playing the game, according to the copy of the contract.

Florida A&M and USF first met on the gridiron in 2005 and have played three times overall. The Bulls won the most recent meeting 51-3 in 2015 to extend their lead in the series to 3-0.

USF is the first scheduled non-conference opponent for Florida A&M for the 2021 season. The Rattlers are scheduled to open the 2019 season at another Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) school in Florida, UCF, on either Thursday, Aug. 29 or Saturday, Aug. 31.

The addition of Florida A&M tentatively completes USF’s 2021 non-conference schedule. The Bulls are scheduled to open the season at NC State on Thursday, Sept. 2, host Florida on Saturday, Sept. 11, and travel to face BYU on Friday, Sept. 24.

Florida A&M will take on the Miami Hurricanes at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, on Sept. 7, 2024 and then again two seasons later on Sept. 12, 2026. FAMU will receive guarantees of $700,000 for the 2024 contest and $740,000 for the 2026 contest, according to the contract copy.

The contract also states that if Florida A&M’s band makes the trip to Miami Gardens, they will be paid an additional $40,000 in each year.

Florida A&M and Miami first met on the gridiron in 1979 in Tallahassee. The Rattlers defeated the Hurricanes 16-13 in that contest, but Miami has reeled off 10 straight victories since then, each one in Miami. In their last matchup in 2016, Miami clobbered Florida A&M 70-3.

The games against Miami are the first scheduled non-conference contests for Florida A&M for both the 2024 and 2026 seasons.

Miami has one other non-conference opponent announced for the 2024 season — a game at Notre Dame on a date to be determined. Florida A&M is their first scheduled non-conference opponent in 2026.

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