After 44 Years Bobby Bowden will not be on the Sidelines...

Bobby Bowden was the coach at FSU for 34 years, his first 16 seasons FSU was an independent. After joining the ACC FSU went on to win the conference 11 of the first 12 seasons.

What is the most amazing feat is FSU finished in the top 5 in national rankings for 14 years, from 1987 to 2000. In that span FSU was ranked 4th and 5th by one service or the other three times. This mean that someone had FSU ranked 4th or higher in the country for those 14 consecutive seasons that included two concensus national championships in 1993 and 1999.

Below....
Wrote 'Bowden Should Quit' after the Florida - FSU game last season. Some strong points were made especially toward the end on the ACC vs SEC. This was prior to Bobby Bowden's announcement that he was standing down as FSU's football coach.

Right below is a comment I added to the post after seeing the FSU replay show the next day...

- - I watched the Sun Sports replay of the game this morning, Bobby Bowden was interviewed after the game and I swear it looked like he had been crying. His eyes were red, maybe that was it for him, he said he'd have to do some soul searching. Next season can't be appealing for him. - -


Bowden Should Quit.....


Swampie's Rumor Mill
August 29th, 2009

It shouldn't have come to this but the best thing Bobby Bowden can do is quit his job as the head coach of FSU. He wants to leave on his terms if he stays another year he will lose that opportunity.

FSU will push him out the door and all that he built will crumble. His run at Florida State will never crumble but the Seminole program has and will continue to do so.

Jimbo Fisher the famous coach in waiting hasn't done that much with FSU. He's developed a decent offense this season but everything the Seminoles did in this process has been wrong.

FSU has often been a trend setter like the Deion Rule or play to the Echo once again creates a first in college football. Although they didn't start the coach in waiting thing they dam sure finished it, no one can possibly think that's desirable now.

Gone for Fisher is that recruiting boom that usually comes with the hire of a new coach. Right now its same old same old which can't be very appealing. About all FSU has on defense is a linebacker who can run like hell and make tackles forty yards down field, something every sorry defensive team needs.

Who will coach Bowden be fooling next season, he won't have any input into what's going on, hell he may as well move a nice comfortable bed into his office and snooze most of the day away if he doesn't do that already. The man is 80, he looks good, he's had a wonderful career, he doesn't need this.

And FSU has proved they no longer deserve him.

He will think it over. He saw how far his football team was behind Florida yesterday. No amount of optimism can cause him to realistically think that can be made up in one season. FSU has some athletes but lack the horses.

Florida will be awesome again next season even if the Gators lose a small herd of juniors.

In the SEC this season there were only two top teams Alabama and Florida, then LSU, Ole Miss and six 7-5 teams. Yesterday two of those 7-5 teams South Carolina and Georgia beat the two teams headed for the ACC Championship game, Clemson and Georgia Tech.

FSU finished the 7th best team in the ACC at 6-6, 4-4 in the conference. Would a 9-to-10 win season next fall leave the program where Bowden can walk away in peace, especially if he had nothing what so ever to do with anything?

He can walk away now and hold his head high. Florida State betrayed him, he doesn't need to stick around like Ceasar and let the idiots up there spear him to death after next season. Et tu FSU!

Gator DE Johnie Church's Great Freshman Season

It can be done. Sure it's a lot to ask of a guy like Ronald Powell or Lynden Trail to come in as true freshmen and have a big season at defensive end in the SEC, but it has been done at Florida so who's to say those guys can't do it this year!

Once upon a time there was one defensive end at Florida. He was in his first year as a Gator and had a great season. Consider that he had 55 or his 61 total tackles over the last eight games of the season which happened to be the games he started. In those starts he averaged 6.9 tackles per game you figure that over 13 games played that season it was a horrid pace that would have totaled 90 tackles, that's all-American stuff.

Johnie Church played around 235 his freshman season, 1992, with the Gators, he was 6-3.

FRESHMAN STATS - 32 solo tackles, 29 assists, 61 total... 4 sacks, 4 tackles for a loss, 8 total tackles for loss, 1 pass deflection, 6 quarterback hurries, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery. Had 55 tackles in his eight starts, average of 6.9 per game. First career start against Auburn he had 10 tackles. Had 9 tackles, 1.5 quarterback sacks, and a forced hurry against South Carolina.

(RS - redshirted freshman year, TT - total tackles, freshman season total to senior season total from left to right.)

Name	RS	Years played	TT	TT	TT	TT
Johnie Church	-	1992, 93, 94, 95	61	29	20	30
Tim Newton*	-	1981, 82, 83, 84	46	54	79	77
Huey Richardson	-	1987, 88, 89, 90	26	68	79	58
Brad Culpepper	RS	1988, 89, 90, 91	25	60	64	82
Ellis Johnson	-	1991, 92, 93, 94	16	32	55	62
Kevin Carter	-	1981, 82, 83, 84	14	64	59	66
Reggie McGrew	RS	1996, 97, 98	39	26	41	-
Gerard Warren	RS	1998, 99, 00	27	52	76	-
Marcus Thomas	-	2003, 04, 05, 06	47	39	45	-
Ray McDonald	RS	2003, 04, 05, 06	54	39	8	36
Lawrence Marsh	RS	2007, 08, 09	5	28	8	-
Wilbur Marshall	-	1980, 81, 82, 83	0	121	123	95
David Little	-	1977, 78,79, 80	67	138	109	161

Johnie Church - College: Played at the University of Florida from 1992 to 1995... Was part of a distinguished senior class that won four consecutive Southeastern Conference Eastern Division championships, three straight SEC titles, and played in the school's first "national championship" game, the 1996 Fiesta Bowl against eventual national champion Nebraska...Started eight games as a true freshman in 1992...In that first season, he posted 61 tackles and was named a first-team Freshman All-American by USA Today and the Associated Press...Had a rough season in 1993; he was hampered by numerous injuries and notched just 29 tackles...Returned to health in 1994, playing in all 12 games as the Gators marched to the Sugar Bowl...Posted five tackles for losses and six quarterback hurries...Started in 10 out of 12 games as a senior, including the penultimate Fiesta Bowl encounter...Finished second on the team with nine quarterback hurries... Made 30 tackles...Had his biggest game of the season against Vanderbilt, posting a season-high 2.5 sacks and six tackles...

Lingering Effects of Florida's 1984 Probation

Over 25 years ago and this man still believes there are lingering effects of that horrible probation put on the Gators of 1984. Not going down the list, reduced scholarships, reduced caps, no bowls, 1st SEC Title in 1984 taken away Tennessee lead the charge on that.

The Gators learned from that unpleasant event, they were fortunate to have current AD Jeremy Foley on staff. One example of this is Adrian Bushell, an old Coach out to the West would have him on the practice field in the Spring working at getting ready to take over a corner spot in the Fall.

But not at Florida.

Bushell, a third year defensive back, was kept out of spring to work on academics so he'll be eligible in the fall.

It isn't that Florida kids don't get in trouble like kids at other schools. What makes Florida special is what they do about it.

Something very good came out of something very bad. Back in 1984 Florida admitted their guilt, accepted their punishment, there were cries of cruel and unusual punishment, but unlike other schools that felt they'd been had by the NCAA Florida swore to go on and play by the rules and even go above and beyond.

That attitude has made them what they are and is one big reason their fans are so dam proud to be a Florida Gator.