Football Coach Bobby Bowden ‘King of the Road’ dies at 91

Coach Bobby Bowden, who developed Florida State into a collegiate football dynasty, has died at 91. Bobby Bowden revealed on July 21 he had pancreatic cancer, which Terry Bowden confirmed. He had prostate cancer treatment over a decade ago.

Coach Bobby Bowden, a fervent Christian, believed he was ready for what lay ahead.

He was a Seminoles fan favourite, a widely regarded star, and one of the most approachable in college football. For years, his house phone number appeared in the Tallahassee phone book.

Bowden racked up 377 victories in 40 years as a major college coach, from tiny Samford (then known as Howard College) to West Virginia and eventually Florida State (315-98-4). During his 34 years as coach, the Seminoles won 12 AAC Championships and two national titles (1993 and 1999).

Under Bowden, Florida State enjoyed a 14-year streak (1987-2000) of placing in the top five of the Associated Press college football poll.

“Florida State University has lost an icon in Bobby Bowden,” stated University President John Thrasher. “Coach Bowden constructed a football dynasty and elevated Florida State University’s national prominence with class and wit.”

Bowden departed after the 2009 season with a Gator Bowl victory over West Virginia, Florida State’s 28th consecutive postseason triumph. 61 athletes were caught up in an academic cheating scandal in 2006 and 2007.

Only Penn State’s Joe Paterno has won more games (409). Bowden has the fourth-most victories in college football history.

Both in 1993 and 1999, Bowden won the national championship with Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Charlie Ward and All-American receiver Peter Warrick.

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For more than a decade, the Seminoles were a title contender. Florida State lost national championship games to Florida, Tennessee, and Oklahoma, and missed out on multiple seasons due to losses to archrival Miami.

Both coaches who built Florida’s college football powerhouses in the 1980s died this year. Howard Schnellenberger, 87, died in March after leading Miami to its first national title in 1983.

Florida State dominated the ACC under Bowden, capturing 12 of their first 14 championships since joining in 1992.

As the patriarch of college football’s most colourful coaching clan, coach Bobby Bowden had enough to say He coached at Tulane and Clemson, while Terry Bowden was 47-17-1 at Auburn. Jeff, his father’s other son, coached wide receivers for 13 years and was offensive coordinator for six seasons before quitting in 2006.

Jeff Bowden’s tenure at Florida State was abysmal, reflecting the program’s decline in the early 2000s. Boosters paid Jeff Bowden $537,500 to resign after the offence had its worst year in a quarter-century.

Bobby Bowden left West Virginia in 1976 to take over a Florida State team that had won just four games in three seasons. His first season, the Seminoles went 5-6 and never lost again under a coach who prepared for football games like WWII generals.

By 1979, Bowden had Florida State primed for one of the greatest runs in college football history.

The Seminoles went 11-0 during the regular season before losing to Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl. Florida State earned their first national title in 1993, after nearly winning in 1987, 1988, 1991, and 1992.

Bowden’s first perfect season occurred in 1999 when the Seminoles were ranked No. 1 by The Associated Press from start to end.

For Bowden, the first championship was a relief.  From 2001-09, the Seminoles went 74-42 on the field, winning 10 or more games in 18 of Bowden’s 34 seasons.

Following his retirement, Bowden remained visible in the public eye, writing a book, giving speeches, and disclosing his prostate cancer treatment in 2007. His fear of retirement stemmed from the loss of his lifelong idol, former Alabama coach Paul “Bear” Bryant, who died just weeks after retiring.

He overcame rheumatic disease as a youth to quarterback Woodlawn High School in Birmingham, then transferred to Alabama for a semester before starring at quarterback for his hometown Howard University.

Bowden developed the Florida State programme by scheduling challenging opponents everywhere, usually at their stadium. A three-game winning streak at Nebraska, Ohio State, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, and LSU earned him the title of “King of the Road” in 1981.

Some have dubbed him Riverboat Gambler for his audacious play-calling.

During Bowden’s tenure, Florida State won at Michigan, Southern California, and, of course, rivals Florida and Miami. In 1987, Florida State thrashed Big Ten champion Michigan State 31-3 in East Lansing and SEC champion Auburn 34-6 at home.

The Seminoles nicknamed Deion Sanders “Prime Time” because he was one of the top recruiters and developers of tremendous individual abilities.

Florida State’s recruiting classes were consistently among the best in the country. By the 1990s, the Seminoles were regularly sending top talent to the NFL, including four of the first 19 picks in 2006, the same year Bowden was inducted.