All 77,474 Gator Bowl tickets gone in 2 hours.

[ISUAgronomist]

Gator Bowl sells all 77,474 tickets in two hours - ESPN

No question that Bowden's retirement helped that out. A lot of people wanted to see a little bit of FSU history.

 

[Go2Guy]

Gator Bowl sells all 77,474 tickets in two hours - ESPN

No question that Bowden's retirement helped that out. A lot of people wanted to see a little bit of FSU history.

He insisted on playing a bowl game in Florida.

Anyway, I remember the days as a Soph / Junior at ISU and we played Florida State as part of our "pancake" non-conf schedule. This could have been '78, maybe '79, but I seem to recall it was Donnie Duncan's first year; pretty sure Bruce had left for Ohio State.

Florida State was and used to be a small school with no significance in Football, or athletics. If Burt Reynolds played QB for them in the 60's, it was not considered "big time".

We won the game.

But at that time Bowden was getting a lot of rep around the country for a couple of reasons: he played the toughest schedule in the country; he would go to places like @ Nebraska, @ Oklahoma, @ Alabama.....and he would play them tough....
because none of them had seen teams come in with a crazy passing game.

College football was going towards the passing game iin the mid / late 70's. The days of the Wishbone, and MIchigan / Ohio St 3-yards and a cloud of dust were getting to be "old school". Iowa State, as always was not a leader, but still using the Dexter Green / Dwyane Crutchfields.........Hayden Fry was getting some rep as a 'gunslinger', but it was Bowden who was really opening up the game and making some noise with upsets over ranked teams. Fl State was fun to watch and I'll respect Bowden for what he brought to college FB.

 

[wesley_w]

In particular, I remember a game where FSU went to Nebraska as an underdog and beat them. Afterwards, Tom Osborne said that game made him realize that speed was becoming more important in college football and he would recruit accordingly.

 

[HOTDON]

He insisted on playing a bowl game in Florida.

Anyway, I remember the days as a Soph / Junior at ISU and we played Florida State as part of our "pancake" non-conf schedule. This could have been '78, maybe '79, but I seem to recall it was Donnie Duncan's first year; pretty sure Bruce had left for Ohio State.

Florida State was and used to be a small school with no significance in Football, or athletics. If Burt Reynolds played QB for them in the 60's, it was not considered "big time".

We won the game.

But at that time Bowden was getting a lot of rep around the country for a couple of reasons: he played the toughest schedule in the country; he would go to places like @ Nebraska, @ Oklahoma, @ Alabama.....and he would play them tough....
because none of them had seen teams come in with a crazy passing game.

College football was going towards the passing game iin the mid / late 70's. The days of the Wishbone, and MIchigan / Ohio St 3-yards and a cloud of dust were getting to be "old school". Iowa State, as always was not a leader, but still using the Dexter Green / Dwyane Crutchfields.........Hayden Fry was getting some rep as a 'gunslinger', but it was Bowden who was really opening up the game and making some noise with upsets over ranked teams. Fl State was fun to watch and I'll respect Bowden for what he brought to college FB.

Well said. I vividly remember watching FSU hold off Nebraska in the 1994 Orange Bowl. I was 14 and I went with my parents to a bowl party at a friends house. I was a lone FSU fan awash in a sea Huskers. It was an amazing end to great game that solidified college football as my favorite spectator sport.

I think it's great that Bowden is being sent out this way, though I wish it had been 100% by his own choosing.

 

[synapticwave]

He insisted on playing a bowl game in Florida.

Anyway, I remember the days as a Soph / Junior at ISU and we played Florida State as part of our "pancake" non-conf schedule. This could have been '78, maybe '79, but I seem to recall it was Donnie Duncan's first year; pretty sure Bruce had left for Ohio State.

Florida State was and used to be a small school with no significance in Football, or athletics. If Burt Reynolds played QB for them in the 60's, it was not considered "big time".

We won the game.

But at that time Bowden was getting a lot of rep around the country for a couple of reasons: he played the toughest schedule in the country; he would go to places like @ Nebraska, @ Oklahoma, @ Alabama.....and he would play them tough....
because none of them had seen teams come in with a crazy passing game.

College football was going towards the passing game iin the mid / late 70's. The days of the Wishbone, and MIchigan / Ohio St 3-yards and a cloud of dust were getting to be "old school". Iowa State, as always was not a leader, but still using the Dexter Green / Dwyane Crutchfields.........Hayden Fry was getting some rep as a 'gunslinger', but it was Bowden who was really opening up the game and making some noise with upsets over ranked teams. Fl State was fun to watch and I'll respect Bowden for what he brought to college FB.

I agree with your sentiments on Bowden, however, we played FSU in 1975, Bowden didn't start coaching at FSU until 1976.

 

[Go2Guy]

I agree with your sentiments on Bowden, however, we played FSU in 1975, Bowden didn't start coaching at FSU until 1976.

I stand corrected; that means it was Earl Bruce who coached us.

At the risk of relying on my memory, I think we won something like 10-6. Do you know if we played it in Tallahassee ?? That would have been unusual for a Big 8, even ISU, team to play a non-conf game at Fl State at the time since they were not 'big time' ........... until Bowden showed up the following year.

 

[wesley_w]

I stand corrected; that means it was Earl Bruce who coached us.

At the risk of relying on my memory, I think we won something like 10-6. Do you know if we played it in Tallahassee ?? That would have been unusual for a Big 8, even ISU, team to play a non-conf game at Fl State at the time since they were not 'big time' ........... until Bowden showed up the following year.

Earle Bruce had come from University of Tampa after they dropped their football program. He brought a couple players with him like Greg Pittman. Maybe he had connections with FSU from being down there and he set the game up. I'm not sure if schedules were drawn out nearly as far into the future as they are now so maybe he was able to get it scheduled just a year or two in advance.

 

[cybsball20]

He insisted on playing a bowl game in Florida.

Anyway, I remember the days as a Soph / Junior at ISU and we played Florida State as part of our "pancake" non-conf schedule. This could have been '78, maybe '79, but I seem to recall it was Donnie Duncan's first year; pretty sure Bruce had left for Ohio State.

Florida State was and used to be a small school with no significance in Football, or athletics. If Burt Reynolds played QB for them in the 60's, it was not considered "big time".

We won the game.

But at that time Bowden was getting a lot of rep around the country for a couple of reasons: he played the toughest schedule in the country; he would go to places like @ Nebraska, @ Oklahoma, @ Alabama.....and he would play them tough....
because none of them had seen teams come in with a crazy passing game.

College football was going towards the passing game iin the mid / late 70's. The days of the Wishbone, and MIchigan / Ohio St 3-yards and a cloud of dust were getting to be "old school". Iowa State, as always was not a leader, but still using the Dexter Green / Dwyane Crutchfields.........Hayden Fry was getting some rep as a 'gunslinger', but it was Bowden who was really opening up the game and making some noise with upsets over ranked teams. Fl State was fun to watch and I'll respect Bowden for what he brought to college FB.

Florida State was an all girls school untill the early 50's? I beleive. They were close to dropping football before Bowden. Growing up a Gator fan you learn to have a strange love-hate-respect feeling towards Bobby. One of my buddy's dad played under Bowden in those early years and his DL coach was Bill Parcells, boy did he ever have some great stories.

 

[CycloneErik]

He insisted on playing a bowl game in Florida.

Anyway, I remember the days as a Soph / Junior at ISU and we played Florida State as part of our "pancake" non-conf schedule. This could have been '78, maybe '79, but I seem to recall it was Donnie Duncan's first year; pretty sure Bruce had left for Ohio State.

Florida State was and used to be a small school with no significance in Football, or athletics. If Burt Reynolds played QB for them in the 60's, it was not considered "big time".

We won the game.

But at that time Bowden was getting a lot of rep around the country for a couple of reasons: he played the toughest schedule in the country; he would go to places like @ Nebraska, @ Oklahoma, @ Alabama.....and he would play them tough....
because none of them had seen teams come in with a crazy passing game.

College football was going towards the passing game iin the mid / late 70's. The days of the Wishbone, and MIchigan / Ohio St 3-yards and a cloud of dust were getting to be "old school". Iowa State, as always was not a leader, but still using the Dexter Green / Dwyane Crutchfields.........Hayden Fry was getting some rep as a 'gunslinger', but it was Bowden who was really opening up the game and making some noise with upsets over ranked teams. Fl State was fun to watch and I'll respect Bowden for what he brought to college FB.

I agree. By the time I got to college in 1992, Florida State games were must-see TV for me. Innovative, exciting, and by that point he was just starting into that run of 14 straight years in the top 5 (well, 14ish. Don't recall the exact #).

He'd play anybody, play them anywhere, and before long, he'd beat 'em, too. It was exciting, daring, great stuff to watch.

I need to make sure to watch this game. They'll have a commemorative presentation that blows people away.

 

[cyclonenum1]

Gator Bowl sells all 77,474 tickets in two hours - ESPN

No question that Bowden's retirement helped that out. A lot of people wanted to see a little bit of FSU history.

Not surprising. I used to live in Jax and there is a strong contingent of Noles fans in that area. Not to mention, Tallahassee is not that far away.

I really hate to see how Bowden got railroaded out at FSU after he "made" the program what it is. He also spurned a number of offers to go elsewhere through the years (LSU for one). He deserved better...Bobby Bowden is Florida State football.

I know a guy who played at FSU in the early 80s and he can tell some great Bowden stories. What is really neat is that Bowden apparently has an incredible ability to remember a lot of specifics about the families of his players through the years...moms, dads, siblings, specific stories, etc. His ex-players love him, in large part I believe, because he cared for them while they played and has continued to care for them after they left FSU.

I can see FSU really struggling post-Bowden. Florida is strong, Alabama is strong...they are key recruiting rivals. Miami is showing life again, USF and UCF are there to lure the kids with suspect academic records. It is going to be tough sledding for Jimbo Fisher.