Post by rainman on Dec 2, 2009 9:01:13 GMT -5
FSU coach Bowden to retire after bowl game
Against WVU in Gator possible
BY BRENT KALLESTAD ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Bobby Bowden orchestrated one of the great runs in college football, building Florida State into a powerhouse that produced two national titles, dozens of All-Americans and some of the most memorable missed field goals ever.
Bowden said Tuesday he will end his 44-year coaching career after the Seminoles play in a bowl game. Bowden was done in by a combination of off-field woes, too many defeats and coach-in-waiting Jimbo Fisher, a former quarterback at Clarksburg Liberty High School and Salem College, ready to take over.
“Nothing lasts forever, does it?” a relaxed-looking Bowden asked during video interview conducted by school officials. “But I’ve had some wonderful years here at Florida State, you know it. Hadn’t done as good lately as I wish I could have, but I’ve had wonderful years, no regrets.”
The 80-year-old Bowden will retire as the second winningest coach in major-college football behind Penn State’s Joe Paterno. The folksy coach has won 388 games at Samford, West Virginia University and Florida State, where he spent the last 34 seasons.
FSU President T.K. Wetherell told the Tallahassee Democrat that FSU will play West Virginia University in the Jan. 1 Gator Bowl in Jacksonville, though no official announcement has been made. Bowl officials have said they would like to have this matchup if arrangements can be made in the selection process.
Bowden was faced with the option of coming back next season with diminished control over the program, giving Fisher more power.
“We’ve got one more game and I look forward to enjoying these next few weeks as the head football coach,” Bowden said earlier Tuesday in a statement released by the school.
The Seminoles are bowl eligible at 6-6, and were awaiting word on where they will play. They’re also awaiting word from the NCAA on whether 14 victories in recent seasons will be vacated because of an academic cheating scandal.
Bowden won two national titles at Florida State, in 1993 and 1999. Among his top achievements is a string of 14 straight seasons ending in 2000 when the Seminoles won at least 10 games and finished ranked in the top five of the AP poll. Florida State was 152-19-1, an .864 winning percentage, during that span. He has a 315- 97-4 record with the Seminoles, but his teams were 73-42 the past nine seasons.
“He set records of achievement on the field that will probably never be equaled,” Wetherell said. “Bobby Bowden in many ways became the face of Florida State. It was his sterling personality and character that personified this university.”
FSU officials announced after the 2007 season that Fisher, the offensive coordinator, would succeed Bowden.
The end of the Bowden era has been brewing for years, and the call for change only grew louder this year, when loss after loss, many coming in the final minutes, began piling up. The regular season ended with a sixth straight loss to bitter rival Florida, a 37-10 blowout.
A football lifer, Bowden modeled his career after his idol Paul “Bear” Bryant, the legendary Alabama coach who died shortly after he retired in 1982.
“After you retire, there’s only one big event left,” Bowden has said over the years. “And I ain’t ready for that.”
Bowden seemed to be in good humor during the video interview, saying his family doesn’t have to worry about his well being.
Against WVU in Gator possible
BY BRENT KALLESTAD ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Bobby Bowden orchestrated one of the great runs in college football, building Florida State into a powerhouse that produced two national titles, dozens of All-Americans and some of the most memorable missed field goals ever.
Bowden said Tuesday he will end his 44-year coaching career after the Seminoles play in a bowl game. Bowden was done in by a combination of off-field woes, too many defeats and coach-in-waiting Jimbo Fisher, a former quarterback at Clarksburg Liberty High School and Salem College, ready to take over.
“Nothing lasts forever, does it?” a relaxed-looking Bowden asked during video interview conducted by school officials. “But I’ve had some wonderful years here at Florida State, you know it. Hadn’t done as good lately as I wish I could have, but I’ve had wonderful years, no regrets.”
The 80-year-old Bowden will retire as the second winningest coach in major-college football behind Penn State’s Joe Paterno. The folksy coach has won 388 games at Samford, West Virginia University and Florida State, where he spent the last 34 seasons.
FSU President T.K. Wetherell told the Tallahassee Democrat that FSU will play West Virginia University in the Jan. 1 Gator Bowl in Jacksonville, though no official announcement has been made. Bowl officials have said they would like to have this matchup if arrangements can be made in the selection process.
Bowden was faced with the option of coming back next season with diminished control over the program, giving Fisher more power.
“We’ve got one more game and I look forward to enjoying these next few weeks as the head football coach,” Bowden said earlier Tuesday in a statement released by the school.
The Seminoles are bowl eligible at 6-6, and were awaiting word on where they will play. They’re also awaiting word from the NCAA on whether 14 victories in recent seasons will be vacated because of an academic cheating scandal.
Bowden won two national titles at Florida State, in 1993 and 1999. Among his top achievements is a string of 14 straight seasons ending in 2000 when the Seminoles won at least 10 games and finished ranked in the top five of the AP poll. Florida State was 152-19-1, an .864 winning percentage, during that span. He has a 315- 97-4 record with the Seminoles, but his teams were 73-42 the past nine seasons.
“He set records of achievement on the field that will probably never be equaled,” Wetherell said. “Bobby Bowden in many ways became the face of Florida State. It was his sterling personality and character that personified this university.”
FSU officials announced after the 2007 season that Fisher, the offensive coordinator, would succeed Bowden.
The end of the Bowden era has been brewing for years, and the call for change only grew louder this year, when loss after loss, many coming in the final minutes, began piling up. The regular season ended with a sixth straight loss to bitter rival Florida, a 37-10 blowout.
A football lifer, Bowden modeled his career after his idol Paul “Bear” Bryant, the legendary Alabama coach who died shortly after he retired in 1982.
“After you retire, there’s only one big event left,” Bowden has said over the years. “And I ain’t ready for that.”
Bowden seemed to be in good humor during the video interview, saying his family doesn’t have to worry about his well being.
