With Bobby Bowden set to retire, and with the potential of a Florida State-West Virginia bowl game as his final farewell, it’s time to take a look at some memorable moments:
5. No. 1 vs. No. 2, Nov. 30, 1996 » The Seminoles knock undefeated Florida (averaging 49 points per game) and eventual Heisman Trophy winner Danny Wuerffel off their perch, sacking Wuerffel six times in a 24-21 upset in Tallahassee.
4. The game that wasn’t played, No. 21, 1970 » After the horrific Marshall University plan crash, Bowden — then the head coach at West Virginia — asks the NCAA to let WVU play Marshall’s final game of the 1970 season against Ohio. He is denied, but the offer is a great indication of his character.
3. National championship No. 2, Jan. 4, 2000 » Sugar Bowl MVP Peter Warrick and the Seminoles put the finishing touches on Bowden’s only undefeated season, outscoring Virginia Tech, 18-0, in the fourth quarter of a 46-29 win in the second BCS title game.
2. Legendary coaches meet, Jan. 3, 2006 » The two winningest coaches in NCAA history square off in the Orange Bowl, as Joe Paterno‘s Penn State Nittany Lions edge Bowden’s Seminoles, 26-23, on a double-overtime field goal by kicker Kevin Kelly.
1. National championship No. 1, Jan. 1, 1994 » Bowden’s first national championship is a nail-biter, as Heisman Trophy winner Charlie Ward and the Seminoles take a late lead, 18-16, and then sweat out a last-second missed field goal by Nebraska kicker Byron Bennett.
