Tributes pour in in honor of Florida state football coach Bobby Bowden

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8:57 a.m. ET

  • Jeremy WillisESPN.com

Legendary Florida state football coach Bobby Bowden passed away on Sunday morning and the game lost one of his indelible icons.

Bowden coached at Florida State from 1976 to 2009, making the Seminoles program a national power. He won the 1993 and 1999 national championships and produced two Heisman Trophy winners and dozens of All-Americans and NFL draft picks. He also won 357 games during his coaching career, placing second all-time.

In July, it was announced that Bowden was terminally ill. He was 91 years old.

“He was one of a kind,” former Florida state running back Warrick Dunn said in a tweet.

His artisanal and southern charm as well as his success have made him a beloved figure in the sport. The tribute poured in on Sunday morning when the state of Florida announced his death.

“Coach Bowden was one of the greatest coaches of all time, but more than that he was an incredible man,” FSU coach Mike Norvell said in a statement. “He was a special human being who earned a lasting legacy because of his wonderful heart, faith and the values ​​he lived. It was the honor of my life to know him and above all else what I could dream of having a relationship with him.

With Bowden, FSU became a dominant program in the 1980s and 1990s, ranking in the top five in the AP poll from 1987 to 2000. Many of its players posted messages on Sunday.

FSU players

Bowden’s matches with rivals Miami, Florida and later Clemson often had national title implications and lived in a tradition worthy of a nickname. It was “Wide Right I” and its aftermath. The “Choke at Doak” and “Bowden Bowl” where Bobby Bowden faced his son Tommy Bowden, who coached at Clemson in the late 90s and early 2000s. These rivals also paid tribute.

Rivals

Coaches and schools



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