Robert Cleckler Bowden, who is better known as “Bobby,” is one of the most famous and successful football coaches of all time. He was the coach of the Florida State University (FSU) team for almost seven decades. During that time, the team won more than 300 games and broke all records. Thanks to their now-retired coach Bobby Bowden, the FSU football team had long winning streaks that made them the best in college football. The FSU wouldn’t have gotten this far without him, but coach Bowden doesn’t take all the credit for themselves. He is also thankful to his FSU team, because it was their talent and smarts that helped them pull off such an amazing feat. But there’s no denying that it’s the coach’s job to spot the skills needed to build strong teams that might win, and Bowden was great at his job. Even though he has a very busy job, he makes time for church and is a kind person. Bowden is a man who makes sure he has enough time for his family and friends as well as his life outside of work. Even though he seems bigger than life, his friendliness, charm, and generosity make him a very nice and down-to-earth person. Read the article to find out more about this very good football coach.
Early years and childhood
Bob Bowden and Sunset Bowden had a son named Bobby Bowden. He was only 13 when he got rheumatic fever and had to stay in the hospital for six months.
After he got out of the army, he couldn’t go anywhere for almost a year. During this time, he got used to listening to University of Alabama football games on the radio on Saturday mornings and became interested in the sport.
He went to Woodlawn High School, where he was one of the best football players. He was also a quarterback for the University of Alabama.
In 1953, he got his degree from what is now Samford University but was then called Howard College.
Bobby Bowden’s Career
Bowden was an assistant football coach and the head track and field coach at Howard College in Birmingham, Alabama, from 1954 to 1955.
Then, from 1956 to 1958, he was South Georgia College’s Athletic Director and also the head football, baseball, and basketball coach.
After he left South Georgia College, he went back to Howard College and stayed there until 1962. He then became an assistant coach at Florida State University.
He left Florida State University in 1965 to become a coach at West Virginia University. In 1969, he became the school’s head coach. In 1976, he became the head coach at Florida State University again.
He was the football coach for the Florida State Seminoles for 34 years, and he only lost one season. On December 1, 2009, he told the Florida State University that he was leaving.
Awards & Achievements
From 1987 to 2000, he was the football coach at Florida State University (FSU). During that time, the team always had at least 10 wins and was always in the top five of the Associated Press College Football Poll.
He also has the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) record for winning 11 straight bowl games and going to 14 straight bowl games without losing.
The FSU also won the national title in 1993 and 1999 while Bowden was their coach.
His overall record at FSU is 300-87-4, with 158-27-2 in Tallahassee, 35-10-1 in neutral sites, and 107-50-1 on the other team’s field.
The “United States Sports Academy” gave Bowden the “Amos Alonzo Stagg Coaching Award” for his outstanding work as a coach.
In 2011, the Children’s Hunger Fund, a charity, gave him the “Children’s Champion Award for Leadership Development” for all the good things he had done for others.
Personal History and Legacies
On April 1, 1949, Bowden married his childhood sweetheart, Ann Estock. There are 21 grandchildren between their six children. Bowden has been married to Ann for 56 years.
His sons Tommy and Terry have also coached college football, just like Bowden. Tommy was in charge of the football team at Clemson University, while Terry was in charge of the football team at Auburn University.
The National Collegiate Coach of the Year Award is named after him. It was given for the first time on March 21, 2010, by the Over the Mountain Touchdown Club in Birmingham, Alabama.
Each year, “The Fellowship of Christian Athletes” gives one football player “The National Bobby Bowden Award.”
Estimated Net worth
At the time of his death, Bobby Bowden, an American college football coach, was worth $14 million. Bowden was best known as the coach of the Florida State football team. From 1976 to 2009, he was a coach at Florida State.
Trivia
This well-known retired FSU coach has the second-highest winning percentage among active FBS coaches with 100 wins.
He is only the third coach in the history of big-time college football to have led his team in 500 games.
In the famous “The Bowden Bowl” football game in 1999, this famous coach and his son coached opposing teams. This was the first time anything like this had ever happened in Division I-A football.