So long, Bobby
posted by LW, Tuesday, December 01, 2009
For months, even years, I've made clear my belief that Bobby Bowden needs to hang up his headsets and start playing more golf and taking more afternoon naps than he already does.
I've wondered whether the wins he's accrued over the last few years should end up counting on his coaching record, given that he's doing so little coaching.
Now, though, is the time to honor the man. If yesterday's report by Mark Schlabach of ESPN.com is correct, it's time to marvel at what he did before his program began sharp and embarrassing decline.
Top five finishes every year from 1987 to 2001. Call me when someone else matches that.
When Bowden took over in 1976, the Seminoles were a joke. They'd won a total of four games the previous three seasons, and there was talk of shutting down the program.
FSU won 10 games his second year and finished No. 14. It was the first of 18 10-win seasons Bowden amassed.
And he did it by going on the road to play -- and beat -- national powers who wouldn't come to Tallahassee.
He not only had a vault of trick plays, but the guts to use them when the risks were highest.
Surely you all remember the "Puntrooskie" game at Clemson.
It was the mother of all trick plays, but the real genius was in the timing.
Tie game with 1:33 left, fourth-and-10 from your own 20. If it doesn't work, you lose.
Given what he took over in Tallahassee, Bowden's accomplishments might've made him the best coach in college football history.
Tony Barnhart of the AJC recounts some memories of Bowden, including this poignant anecdote:
On Friday, Sept. 10, 2004 Florida State played at Miami in a game that had been postponed due to Hurricane Frances. The day before Bowden had attended the funeral of his grandson, Bowden Madden, who had been killed in automobile accident related to the Hurricane.
Florida State lost the game, 16-10 in overtime. Those of us who talked to Bowden that night knew how much he was hurting. All of us had a job to do but when you’re talking to a man who just lost a grandson named after him, a football game just doesn’t seem very important. But as always, Bowden answered our questions, even the personal ones about his pain.
When Bowden turned to leave for what was going to be a difficult trip back to Tallahassee, he took off his Florida State cap. He signed his name underneath the bill of the cap and then threw it to Joe Henderson, the fine columnist from the Tampa Tribune.
“Hey, Joe,” Bowden said. “Give that to your grandson.” Then he walked away.
Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel says this day is sad even though it's long overdue.
You could see it in Bobby's body language after the loss to Florida and hear it in his voice. For the first time Saturday, Bobby was not adamant about wanting to come back and coach one final season. He looked like an 80-year-old man who had finally come to the realization that he simply couldn't compete with younger, sharper coaches like Meyer.
"I know Urban's doing a great job," Bowden said without smiling after giving Meyer a post-game hug at midfield. "He's looking at me like, 'You used to do a good job.' "
Hated to hear yesterday's news about Rob Spence.
Syracuse’s offense under Spence had two of its best games to close the season. The Orange scored 31 points against both Rutgers and Connecticut. In those games, Syracuse gained 49 first downs and 913 yards of total offense. Prior to those outbursts, the Orange scored one touchdown or less in three straight Big East defeats. In six games, the Orange failed to gain more than 285 yards and finished with less than 400 yards of offense in nine of 12 games.
Nationally, Syracuse ranks 101st out of 120 teams in the Football Bowl Subdivision in scoring offense. The Orange is 97th in total offense.
Just two years ago, Spence turned down the OC job at Tennessee to remain at Clemson. A year before, he turned down Nick Saban an Alabama.
Now he's been fired twice in a little over a year. Best of luck to Spence and his family.
In the AJC, a story on C.J. Spiller fueling Clemson's trip to the ACC title game.
Looks like ticket sales for Saturday's game are going relatively well.
Rest assured it'll be better attended than this:
In the Macon Telegraph, a story on Clemson's defensive line. Paul Johnson says it's the best the Yellow Jackets faced all season.
You'd think, though, that Johnson would be fairly heartened by what he saw South Carolina's line do to the Tigers' front last week.
Travis Sawchik of The Post and Courier wonders if this week's game has lost its luster.
Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson said no one was talking about the SEC's stature being diminished when Clemson beat South Carolina, and Georgia Tech beat Georgia last season. The counter argument goes something like this: South Carolina and Georgia weren't division champions.
"We've played six SEC teams since I've been here, and I think we're four and two," Johnson said. "I can tell you Clemson has got players every bit as good as Georgia. Don't think for one minute they don't. It is what it is.
"And if you go back and look, Virginia Tech beat Nebraska; does that diminish the Big 12 championship game? Wake Forest beat Stanford; what does that say about the Pac-10? You could go through every league if you wanted to make a case."
Clemson forked out 128 grand on a full-page USA Today ad supporting Spiller, but it might've been too late to drum up support for his Heisman chances.
Sawchik says Clemson's athletics programs were forced to make 10-percent spending cuts to pay for the ad. Ouch.
South Carolina's 34-17 victory over Clemson will forever be known as the brawl game ... by at least two people.
LW
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For months, even years, I've made clear my belief that Bobby Bowden needs to hang up his headsets and start playing more golf and taking more afternoon naps than he already does.
I've wondered whether the wins he's accrued over the last few years should end up counting on his coaching record, given that he's doing so little coaching.
Now, though, is the time to honor the man. If yesterday's report by Mark Schlabach of ESPN.com is correct, it's time to marvel at what he did before his program began sharp and embarrassing decline.
Top five finishes every year from 1987 to 2001. Call me when someone else matches that.
When Bowden took over in 1976, the Seminoles were a joke. They'd won a total of four games the previous three seasons, and there was talk of shutting down the program.
FSU won 10 games his second year and finished No. 14. It was the first of 18 10-win seasons Bowden amassed.
And he did it by going on the road to play -- and beat -- national powers who wouldn't come to Tallahassee.
He not only had a vault of trick plays, but the guts to use them when the risks were highest.
Surely you all remember the "Puntrooskie" game at Clemson.
It was the mother of all trick plays, but the real genius was in the timing.
Tie game with 1:33 left, fourth-and-10 from your own 20. If it doesn't work, you lose.
Given what he took over in Tallahassee, Bowden's accomplishments might've made him the best coach in college football history.
Tony Barnhart of the AJC recounts some memories of Bowden, including this poignant anecdote:
On Friday, Sept. 10, 2004 Florida State played at Miami in a game that had been postponed due to Hurricane Frances. The day before Bowden had attended the funeral of his grandson, Bowden Madden, who had been killed in automobile accident related to the Hurricane.
Florida State lost the game, 16-10 in overtime. Those of us who talked to Bowden that night knew how much he was hurting. All of us had a job to do but when you’re talking to a man who just lost a grandson named after him, a football game just doesn’t seem very important. But as always, Bowden answered our questions, even the personal ones about his pain.
When Bowden turned to leave for what was going to be a difficult trip back to Tallahassee, he took off his Florida State cap. He signed his name underneath the bill of the cap and then threw it to Joe Henderson, the fine columnist from the Tampa Tribune.
“Hey, Joe,” Bowden said. “Give that to your grandson.” Then he walked away.
Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel says this day is sad even though it's long overdue.
You could see it in Bobby's body language after the loss to Florida and hear it in his voice. For the first time Saturday, Bobby was not adamant about wanting to come back and coach one final season. He looked like an 80-year-old man who had finally come to the realization that he simply couldn't compete with younger, sharper coaches like Meyer.
"I know Urban's doing a great job," Bowden said without smiling after giving Meyer a post-game hug at midfield. "He's looking at me like, 'You used to do a good job.' "
Hated to hear yesterday's news about Rob Spence.
Syracuse’s offense under Spence had two of its best games to close the season. The Orange scored 31 points against both Rutgers and Connecticut. In those games, Syracuse gained 49 first downs and 913 yards of total offense. Prior to those outbursts, the Orange scored one touchdown or less in three straight Big East defeats. In six games, the Orange failed to gain more than 285 yards and finished with less than 400 yards of offense in nine of 12 games.
Nationally, Syracuse ranks 101st out of 120 teams in the Football Bowl Subdivision in scoring offense. The Orange is 97th in total offense.
Just two years ago, Spence turned down the OC job at Tennessee to remain at Clemson. A year before, he turned down Nick Saban an Alabama.
Now he's been fired twice in a little over a year. Best of luck to Spence and his family.
In the AJC, a story on C.J. Spiller fueling Clemson's trip to the ACC title game.
Looks like ticket sales for Saturday's game are going relatively well.
Rest assured it'll be better attended than this:
In the Macon Telegraph, a story on Clemson's defensive line. Paul Johnson says it's the best the Yellow Jackets faced all season.
You'd think, though, that Johnson would be fairly heartened by what he saw South Carolina's line do to the Tigers' front last week.
Travis Sawchik of The Post and Courier wonders if this week's game has lost its luster.
Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson said no one was talking about the SEC's stature being diminished when Clemson beat South Carolina, and Georgia Tech beat Georgia last season. The counter argument goes something like this: South Carolina and Georgia weren't division champions.
"We've played six SEC teams since I've been here, and I think we're four and two," Johnson said. "I can tell you Clemson has got players every bit as good as Georgia. Don't think for one minute they don't. It is what it is.
"And if you go back and look, Virginia Tech beat Nebraska; does that diminish the Big 12 championship game? Wake Forest beat Stanford; what does that say about the Pac-10? You could go through every league if you wanted to make a case."
Clemson forked out 128 grand on a full-page USA Today ad supporting Spiller, but it might've been too late to drum up support for his Heisman chances.
Sawchik says Clemson's athletics programs were forced to make 10-percent spending cuts to pay for the ad. Ouch.
South Carolina's 34-17 victory over Clemson will forever be known as the brawl game ... by at least two people.
LW
Link to this entry - Discuss this entry - Return to Blog Home
Donnie Patterson. Donnie Patterson is the founder of Patterson Tax Service, located in Easley, S.C. He has been active in tax preparation since 1970, and offers a full range of tax and bookkeeping services.
Larry Williams. Larry has covered the daily beat at Clemson since 2004. Williams, who worked for the Charleston Post & Courier from 2004-08, joined Tigerillustrated.com in November of 2008. He may be reached by email at ldubya08(at)gmail.com. Replace (at) with @.