The college football world lost a legend Sunday as former Florida State coach Bobby Bowden died at the age of 91. Bowden, who ranks second all-time in NCAA Division I football wins, had been battling pancreatic cancer. He passed away at his Florida home surrounded by his family.
Bowden, a Birmingham, Ala. native, was known not only for his success on the field but also for his kindness and generosity off it. Sunday, Alabama coach Nick Saban spoke about the friend and legend he lost.
“Bobby Bowden was a wonderful friend whose accomplishments as a coach are only surpassed by the character and class he displayed as a husband, father, mentor and friend,” Saban said in a statement released by Alabama. “His passing is a loss for everyone but should be seen as a chance to celebrate a life remarkably well lived. Sometimes it’s not what you do, but who you are that is truly important, and no one embodies that more than Bobby Bowden.
"His influence on the countless young men he led in over 60 years of coaching can never be measured. his achievements as a coach are well documented and among the greatest the game has ever known, but when I think about Coach, it's about the man he was and the impact he had on everyone he encountered. I probably understood that impact even earlier than the rest of college football."
Saban then went on to share a story of his own father's passing which occurred during Bowden's time at West Virginia.
"Coach didn't know me from Adam's house cat, but he knew my dad and got word that maybe my mom was struggling a bit back home in West Virginia," Saban said. "I pick up the phone one day and it's Coach Bowden himself. He tells me he knew my dad and said that if I needed to be closer to home, he would make a place for me on his Mountaineer coaching staff. How many coaches would do that? How many people would do that?
"For me, that story is the personification of the true character of Bobby Bowen. Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife Ann and children Terry, Tommy, Jeff, Ginger, Steve and Robyn."
Bowden’s college journey began at Alabama as he joined the Crimson Tide as a freshman quarterback in 1948 before transferring to Howard College, which is now Samford University. He served as an assistant at Samford from 1954-55 before taking his first head coaching job at South Georgia State College from 1956-58. From there he returned to his alma mater where he became the head coach from 1959-62.
Bowden's first stint at Florida State came as a wide receivers coach from 1963-65. He then served as West Virginia’s offensive coordinator for four seasons before being promoted to the Mountaineers head coach from 1970-75. From there he returned to Florida State where he served as the Seminoles head coach from 1976-2009, amassing 304 wins over that span.
Bowden recorded 377 career wins as a head coach. He ranks fourth among all college coaches and second behind the late Joe Paterno for most all-time among Division I coaches.
