Skip to content

Bowden to retire

Bobby Bowden orchestrated one of the great runs in college football, building Florida State into a powerhouse that produced two national titles, dozens of All-Americans and some of the most memorable missed field goals ever.
Bobby Bowden
Florida State football coach Bobby Bowden

Bobby Bowden orchestrated one of the great runs in college football, building Florida State into a powerhouse that produced two national titles, dozens of All-Americans and some of the most memorable missed field goals ever. Bowden said Tuesday he will end his 44-year coaching career after the Seminoles play in a bowl game. Bowden was done in by a combination of off-field woes, too many defeats and coach-in-waiting Jimbo Fisher ready to take over. The 80-year-old Bowden will retire as the second winningest coach in major-college football behind Penn State’s Joe Paterno. The coach has won 388 games at Samford, West Virginia and Florida State, where he spent the last 34 seasons. The Seminoles are bowl eligible at 6-6, and were awaiting word on where they will play. They’re also awaiting word from the NCAA on whether 14 victories in recent seasons will be vacated because of an academic cheating scandal.