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Davonte Ross had a banner day as the Troy Trojans (1-3) earned their first win of the 2024 season by a score of 34-12 over the Florida A&M Rattlers (2-2) at home on Saturday.

Ross became just the sixth Trojan in school history to eclipse 200 yards receiving and he also broke the school single game receiving record, with 229 yards and three touchdowns on 11 catches. The 229 yards breaks the record that Danny Grant set in 1968 against McNeese State.

While the final score looks a bit lopsided, FAMU gave the Trojans trouble for much of the game and the Troy offense struggled at times, especially early. Still, the Trojans gave head coach Gerad Parker his first career win at the helm at Troy.

“We have so much to clean up but there is no such thing as an ugly, or a bad, win,” Parker said after the game. “This football team needed a win. There is so much good, too. We have to be able to step up and play a little bit cleaner but I’m proud of our guys’ effort and the way we came out of the locker room (in the second half) and finished the football game.

“There’s things to clean up but I love our response. We have a competitive football team and a proud team and I think that came out in the second half.”

Troy started the game off about as well as one could imagine, marching on a quick 6-play scoring drive that Damien Taylor capped off with a 40-yard touchdown run to go up 7-0 early. Florida A&M managed to cut the lead to 7-6 with a pair of short field goals late in the first quarter, however.

After scoring on the first drive, Troy proceeded to punt the ball on three of the next four drives and turning the ball over on downs on the other drive. Finally, the Troy offense got going again when Ross turned a quick screen into a 20-yard touchdown catch with just 46 seconds left in the half to stretch the Trojan lead to 14-6. FAMU then proceeded to get into scoring position quickly and drilled a 31-yard field goal with five seconds left to cut the lead to 14-9 at halftime.

In the third quarter, Crowder found Ross again for a 44-yard touchdown pass that extended Troy’s lead to 21-9 with 10:57 left in the third quarter. FAMU responded with a 43-yard field goal that cut the lead to 21-12 as the Rattlers refused to give up.

As the fourth quarter began, Troy started to take control, though. First, Crowder led the Trojans on a 12-play drive that he capped off with a 7-yard touchdown pass to Taylor to stretch the lead to 27-12. The PAT was no good. Then, backed up at the Troy 2-yard line, Crowder heaved a 98-yard bomb to Ross who scored his third touchdown of the game to seal the win 34-12.

Troy amassed 508 yards of offense, while FAMU tallied 357 yards. Crowder, in his first game back from an injury suffered in week two, completed 18-of-25 passes for 295 yards and four touchdowns. Taylor rushed for 94 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries along with catching a touchdown pass. Ross earned 11 catches for 229 yards and three touchdowns. Ross also returned a kickoff for 43 yards.

On defense, Jordan Stringer led the way with eight tackles and two tackles-for-loss, while Raymond Cutts earned six tackles and a tackle-for-loss. The Troy defense earned two sacks and eight tackles-for-loss on the night.

Daniel Richardson led the FAMU offense with 288 yards and 25-of-39 passing. His favorite target was Jamari Gassett, who hauled in 10 catches for 141 yards.

Troy is back at home net Saturday, Sept. 28, as Sun Belt Conference play gets underway against Louisiana-Monroe at 6 p.m.