1952 Florida A&M Rattlers football team
{{short description|American college football season}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2023}}
{{Infobox college sports team season
| year = 1952
| team = Florida A&M Rattlers
| sport = football
| image =
| image_size =
| conference = Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
| short_conf = SIAC
| record = 8–2
| conf_record = 4–1
| head_coach = Jake Gaither
| hc_year = 8th
| captain =
| stadium = Bragg Stadium
| champion = Black college national champion
SIAC champion
| bowl = Orange Blossom Classic
| bowl_result = W 29–7 vs. {{cfb link|year=1952|team=Virginia State Trojans|title=Virginia State}}
}}
The 1952 Florida A&M Rattlers football team was an American football team that represented Florida A&M University as a member of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) during the 1952 college football season. In their eighth season under head coach Jake Gaither, the Rattlers compiled an 8–2 record, including a victory over Virginia State in the Orange Blossom Classic. The team played its home games at Bragg Stadium in Tallahassee, Florida.
Despite its two losses, the Associated Negro Press rated Florida A&M as the black college football national championship by virtue of having played "the nation's most rugged schedule." {{cfb link|year=1952|team=Lincoln Blue Tigers|title=Lincoln (MO)}} and Texas Southern were rated second and third, respectively.{{cite news|title=Pigskin Huddle|newspaper=The Afro American|date=December 20, 1952|page=17|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=xeklAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ffYFAAAAIBAJ&pg=1179%2C3135479|via=Newspapers.com}} The Pittsburgh Courier also selected Florida A&M as the national champion under its "Courier DoubleR" rating system, ahead of second-place {{cfb link|year=1952|team=Virginia State Trojans|title=Virginia State}} and third-place Lincoln (MO).{{cite news|title=Florida A. & M. Declared 1952 Nat'l Grid Champs|newspaper=The Pittsburgh Courier|date=December 20, 1952|page=16|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/40006500/florida_a_m_declared_1952_natl/|via=Newspapers.com}}
Schedule
{{CFB schedule
| attend = y
| source = y
|September 20|vs|{{cfb link|year=1952|team=Texas College Steers|title=Texas College}}
|October 4|at|{{cfb link|year=1952|team=Benedict Tigers|title=Benedict}}||Columbia, SC|W 34-7||
|October 11||{{cfb link|year=1952|team=Fort Valley State Wildcats|title=Fort Valley State}}|Bragg Stadium|Tallahassee, FL|W 51-0||
|October 18|at|{{cfb link|year=1952|team=Morris Brown Wolverines|title=Morris Brown}}||Atlanta, GA|W 27-7||
|October 25||Prairie View A&M
|November 1|at|{{cfb link|year=1952|team=Bethune–Cookman Wildcats|title=Bethune–Cookman}}||Daytona Beach, FL|L 7-8||
|November 8||{{cfb link|year=1952|team=North Carolina A&T Aggies|title=North Carolina A&T}}
|November 15||{{cfb link|year=1952|team=Allen Yellow Jackets|title=Allen}}|Bragg Stadium|Tallahassee, FL|W 45-7||{{cite news|title=Florida A.&M. Wins Easily|newspaper=The Pittsburgh Courier|date=November 22, 1952|page=15|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/40006762/florida_am_wins_easily/|via=Newspapers.com}}
|November 27|at|{{cfb link|year=1952|team=Southern Jaguars|title=Southern}}
|December 6|vs|{{cfb link|year=1952|team=Virginia State Trojans|title=Virginia State}}
}}
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Florida A&M Rattlers football navbox}}
{{Black college football national champion navbox}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:1952 Florida AandM Rattlers football team}}
Category:Florida A&M Rattlers football seasons
Category:Black college football national champions
Category:Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football champion seasons