30 biggest college football scandals of all time
By Ethan Lee
Florida State and “Free Shoes University”
Bobby Bowden and the Florida State Seminoles put on a dominant display during the 1993 college football season. The Seminoles went on to win a national title after defeating the Nebraska Cornhuskers in Miami and finishing the season at 12-1.
And during that same season, eight Florida State football players were accused of receiving somewhere around $6,000 worth of shoes and clothing.
A businessman from Las Vegas reportedly purchased all of the items, using his own credit card for the purchases. And so, FSU players received shoes, hats, and a multitude of other items. Enough to total about $6,000.
That led to Steve Spurrier dubbing FSU “Free Shoes University,” which is one of the greatest Spurrier taunts of all time (which should be its own list).
As Bowden and Spurrier’s teams battled each other on the field, the two coaches bantered off the field, providing plenty of entertainment to fans involved in the rivalry and onlookers outside of the rivalry.