Legendary Florida State head coach Bobby Bowden dies at 91
Legendary Florida State football coach Bobby Bowden passed away at 91, leaving behind a great legacy.
The college football world and the Florida State football family suffered a great loss as legendary coach Bobby Bowden has died. Bowden’s family and the Florida State football program announced the news on Sunday morning as the legendary coach has passed at the age of 91.
Today we lost a legend but you never lose a legacy. Rest In Peace Coach Bowden pic.twitter.com/f7pQpUPqbJ
— FSU Football (@FSUFootball) August 8, 2021
Last month, Bowden was diagnosed with what turned out to be pancreatic cancer, a disease with a very low survival rate and the one that also claimed the life of legendary Jeopardy host Alex Trebek.
From broadcasters to former players, several people reached out to the Florida State football family, offering their condolences while praising a man who helped bring the Seminoles into the national spotlight.
Condolences to the Bowden family. Bobby was a man of faith. He was warm, friendly, kind-remembered everyone. And as a coach? Brilliant. Legendary. By the force of his will, expertise & courage he built one of the game’s great dynasties virtually from scratch. Remarkable life.
— Rece Davis (@ReceDavis) August 8, 2021
Coach Bobby Bowden for every hug after a TD, for every Pregame Bible verse devotion, for every 2nd & 3rd chance you gave, for every motivational speech, for every one of my teammates you recruited, for every phone call to ask me to be a Seminole, I thank you! Rest In Peace 🙏🏾 pic.twitter.com/EkteetkwDA
— Wayne Messam (@WayneMessam) August 8, 2021
Florida State football: Bobby Bowden leaves behind an incredible legacy
Bowden first took over the Florida State program in 1976, going 5-6 in what turned out to be his only losing season in a long and storied 34-year tenure in Tallahassee. Bowden got Florida State to a bowl game the following year with a 10-2 record, winning 40-17 over Texas Tech in the Tangerine Bowl. Then, from 1982-2009, Bowden’s teams always participated in a bowl game.
Bowden won two national championships in his tenure, the 1993 Orange Bowl against Tom Osborne’s Nebraska Cornhuskers and the 1999 Sugar Bowl against Frank Beamer’s Virginia Tech Hokies. Both seasons culminated with 12 wins, the latter capping off an undefeated season.
Bowden produced several quality teams throughout his tenure and sent multiple players to the NFL, including Hall of Famers Deion Sanders and Derrick Brooks. Additionally, some of Bowden’s assistant coaches have gone on to coach college football programs themselves, including Mark Richt, Kirby Smart, and former Florida State head coach Jimbo Fisher, who won a title with the Seminoles in 2013.
Between 2006 and 2007, however, Bowden was forced to vacate 12 victories due to using ineligible players. As a result, his head coaching record stands at 377–129–4, the 377 victories only second to Joe Paterno (409). Bowden was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2006.
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