Bobby Bowden
Robert Cleckler Bowden (/ˈbaʊdən/; November 8, 1929 – August 8, 2021) was an American college football coach. Bowden coached the Florida State Seminoles of Florida State University (FSU) from 1976 to 2009 and is considered one of the greatest college football coaches of all time for his accomplishments with the Seminoles.
Bowden in 2007 | |
| Biographical details | |
|---|---|
| Born | November 8, 1929 Birmingham, Alabama, U.S. |
| Died | August 8, 2021 (aged 91) Tallahassee, Florida, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| 1948 | Alabama |
| 1949–1952 | Howard (AL) |
| Position(s) | Quarterback, running back |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1954–1955 | Howard (AL) (assistant) |
| 1956–1958 | South Georgia State College |
| 1959–1962 | Howard (AL) |
| 1963–1965 | Florida State (WR) |
| 1966–1969 | West Virginia (OC) |
| 1970–1975 | West Virginia |
| 1976–2009 | Florida State |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 377–129–4 |
| Bowls | 21–10–1 |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| 2 National (1993, 1999) 12 ACC (1992–2000, 2002–2003, 2005) 2 ACC Atlantic Division (2005, 2008) | |
| Awards | |
| Bobby Dodd COY (1980) Walter Camp Coach of the Year Award (1991) Amos Alonzo Stagg Award (2011) | |
| College Football Hall of Fame Inducted in 2006 (profile) | |
During his time at Florida State, Bowden led FSU to an Associated Press and Coaches Poll National Title in 1993 and a BCS National Championship in 1999, as well as twelve Atlantic Coast Conference championships once FSU joined the conference in 1991. Bowden's Seminoles finished as an AP top-5 team for 14 consecutive seasons, setting a record which doubled the closest program. However, the program weakened during the mid-2000s, and after a difficult 2009 season Bowden was fired by President T.K. Wetherell, just weeks after his 80th birthday. He made his final coaching appearance in the 2010 Gator Bowl game on January 1, 2010, with a 33–21 victory over his former program, West Virginia.
Bowden spent the last part of his career in a race with his close friend, Joe Paterno, to become the winningest NCAA Division I college football coach of all time. The coaches overtook each other throughout the 2000s, sitting just a game apart before the 2008 college football season. However, on March 6, 2009, an NCAA ruling required Florida State to "vacate wins for any games in which an ineligible player participated", threatening to remove as many as fourteen of Bowden's wins from the 2006 and 2007 seasons in relation to an academic scandal. Florida State appealed the ruling, but the NCAA upheld it on January 5, 2010. Upon final investigation by FSU, it was determined that Bowden was to vacate 12 wins, bringing his final career record to 377–129–4, second to Paterno's final tally of 409 wins. Although Bowden coached his teams to 411 total wins during his lifetime. Bowden's South Georgia College wins are also not officially counted by the NCAA. A documentary film about Bowden's life, "The Bowden Dynasty", along with a book of the same name were produced by FSU alumni in 2017.