FSU Coach Bobby Bowden speaks in Atlanta

it's good to be back addressing he had landed quarterback club I think the first time I spoke to this group was in the 60s back in the early 60s and then I spoke here about 10 years ago and I really liked the atmosphere dicey the day more than I did the last time they were kind of rowdy back in those days y'all look a little bit more mature thank you but it's good to be here well I have a special interest in this club because I don't think I would have ever coached at Florida State if it were not for the liner quarterback club let me tell you how that works I was head football coach at Sanford University over in Birmingham Alabama back in nineteen fifty-nine through 62 it was called Howard college at that time it's where I went to school and it was a small Korean how about 2,000 students I think they've got about five now but they don't they don't want any more than that they want to stay about that size and so uh the the Atlanta quarterback club which I always felt like was probably the most prestigious quarterback curl up in the country at least you have that reputation you know and so every year at the end of the year they had their main banquet do you still do that still have that right i forgot where it was in january or december but they invited all the major college coaches in the South there and I remember they they had coach Bryant there and they had coach of coach from Auburn their coach Jordan had Bobby Dodd from there and coach Joe from Georgia and Tennessee and these Souls air from LSU but they have about 17 major college coaches up there they did not invite small college coaches I was a small college coach well it won't invite small college is just a majors I got invited man I'm Nanak that comes small college coach and invited you know it and so I go over the here and now then what at the bank but they had a level here with all these big-time coaches I was young I was just getting started in coaching and and and there I am sitting right there with them guess who they said me next to Bill Peterson the head coach at Florida State I didn't know anything about Florida State I never met Bill Peterson but i sat next to him and we got to talking and he asked we said would you be interested in he said I'm just lost one of my assistants which you've interested in coming to Florida State and working for me I said what I might well you know the thing is I've been the head coach on the life with small college don't want to be in the system coach but I felt like and my wife and I felt like if I was ever going to make it big I better get I better get into a major college because I haven't ever been to one you know so anyway my wife and they go down for business the next week and he hires me but I often wonder what would what would my career have been like if the designer quarterback club hadn't invited right at me over now listen why did they invite me because the president plated Howard college where I was coaching and he wanted his coach there so years later thank you you know y'all you know Burt Reynolds right Burt Reynolds back in the 70s was the leading box office attraction in the world for about four years he was number one you know may those smoke in the banquet movies and a lot of other was the longest yard you know and he played football at Florida State now he's he started as a freshman he started his impression tore his knee up Torres Nia out of football goes off and tries to do something else and then decides to give it another try and his knee operated on came back to farm estate and got hurt again so he just did not have a career in football you know so then he goes into the movies he wants to act you know and so he becomes very successful in that field now he loved for a state football and when I became the head football coach at Florida State he used to come down every year go to a ball game well he'd come down and we'll take him in my office me and him sit n shoot the bull now if you've seen him on television all right he is just it's exactly what you see he's a fun-loving God has a good time and she said her in and told what are you gonna laugh you know so he'd come down I dream in my office near not tell jokes and tell stories and laugh about the past and then when I got to warm up on the football field I take him with me he'd go down in the field want to be around those boys see and or nobody get to him cuz he got in the stands day you know he gonna sign autographs all day yo so I take him down the field with me okay now that's the way I went now in nineteen eighty to nineteen eighty-two we're affixed to play on a bowl we had about a month before we played in a bowl I'm sitting in my house that one night I get a phone long long distance phone call it's Burt Reynolds coach mouth we talking about this and that he says by the way I like our uniforms this is true story so I don't like I made them he said well let's let's get some new ones let's just knew it I say Burt those things cost money man we just replenish we get about 20 new per year just going to add things cost a lot of money I'll pay for them whoo let me go let me go see our lips I want to see oh kudi Ingram was our athletic director later became a bit Alabama and I said the hoodie can get a long line about uniforms yeah they can buy okay boy so I called him I said okay man we're gonna buy uniforms so the uniforms that you saw us playing in during my career at Florida State were the ones that Burton I put together the gold pants you know the garden jersey with the gold helmet with a spear on top that was our design you know now they've got a little more fancy area but so anyway he kept up with us so around in 1989 ceau it so we got new uniforms and we wore those four years in about nineteen eighty-eight he calls me again let's get some new uniforms I said burn I like the ones we got I said the people can identify us by our uniforms he so let's get some white ones he played in white when he fled to Florida State said he wanted look like you okay you know you're gonna pay for it right yeah you go buy wine you so we bought white uniform since 1988 and if any of your sauce played clemson that 88 that's when the punt ruski round the punt ruski we were in white you first time we've ever played why but we want well I had this habit if I'm wrong way I want to just keep playing that color whatever it is it happened to be white we stayed in that 46 f games got beef with back to the gold purple Highgarden you know so anyway but any words twice now he'd bought us your function okay now we're going to go down to 2006 we play an Alabama down in jacksonville florida bama don't know if that's a home game for us thought it was a road game for us so we're gonna play on Obama down in Jacksonville Florida well coach oh ho he calls me up again Bobby let's get some more uniforms I said burn we don't need any more uniform we got garnet and gold and white I can piece those things together get seven different colors out definitely film we don't need any more uniform you well I want to give you something huh I'm gonna send you I'm gonna send you 75 thousand dollars and whatever we need the most you get it to those boys I said okay I'll be fine you know so anyway the game comes up we go to jacks full andrew goodman right by couple eyes or we play the get work glock to warm up bird calls me and he's in time gonna come to the game come by the hotel we should try and shoot the bull for about an hour then i take him out on the field with me now he wants to go out and see what I bought them it's all you want to do so he and I grounded him after the middle feel you know but Alabama's warming up down here my boys were warming up there every time one of my boys comes by he said Lou didn't you shoes you go you come to get your new shoes yeah now the same old shoes we been where another guy can remember hey how about that helmet did you buy did you get it my helmet so what you know same ol Ellis you know how about those shoes so those the ones I did you buy know what you doing the money I told you whatever you need the most to get it I said we did he said what you do as I gave it to the fishes I'll tell you something that's something I have something I have spoken a lot because it's so important the value of athletics to colleges and high schools the value there would be some people who were thick on football ism it's a distraction it's a distraction for education we don't need to get that football we don't even have this you know and but let me show you the tell you the value of competitive sports and I'll use the example of football that's what I closed I go to Florida State in 1976 I was at the head coach West Virginia University so I go down to Florida State as a head football coach now they had 10 and 11 1 in 10 3 and 8 and went for ball games in for ball games in three years so they're 52 dadgum coach and they hire me down there you know and nobody's coming to the games we got a 30 we got a 4,000 seat stadium we can't we get sick we're having to 17,000 you have got to fill your Stadium that pays all the bills at Florida State man you know it and so we won they wouldn't fill a stadium so I'm thinking man I got to we got to tell this place up well they gave me ten complimentary tickets every ballgame I got 10 free tickets complimentary now you can't sell complimentary tickets it's against the law but you can give away yeah but they were for the family and so I gave it two of them to my wife and I gave I had two children living with us at the time Oh gave one of them to in the other were to where they could take a friend that I had a neighbor I gave him to you know they had two left nobody want them I tried to give them the janitor I said hey here's your two tickets tomorrow baby i ain't coming how about an old it over I'm thinking man I gotta get I gotta get somebody needs tickets I'm going we got to get fans out there you know so I go down to the shopping mall tallahassee mall you know that's where everybody they have a game coming at earlier everybody goes to the mall also i get rid of them two tickets you know so I go down there I got it my Barbara is in there I'm gonna get a haircut I put on right in front of the main door and I take those tickets and I stick them on the outside of my windshield Colette blame them but that thing that I said not somebody will get them tickets you I'll have him to there you know I go and get a haircut I'm in there about an hour I come out to six tickets on my windshield anyway but anyway but you know what still the first year at Florida State we have a losing year we're five and six Lily that'll give me Tallahassee but at five and six by the way cool even went to know that young games four years later we undefeated the present I used to go out and make them trying to raise money for Florida State with the President and I've heard them tell this story himself talking about the value of athletics when Florida State's started winning and got on national television and started going to major Bowes he said I our enrollment just doubled practically he said normally in the spring when we have saved 2,500 2,500 applications openings for students we could have we could get 25 people they want to come here you know we could even fill her quota but could he fill up my dorms you know we're going to build the dorms and so he said but you know when we started winning ball games and hitting on national television all of a sudden if we had 25 openings we had five some applicants from all over the country you know and so we all learned a big lesson there man yeah you need athletics you know and of course not that she was good if you can win you know it they don't for another that's the only thing about coach and I loved it when you win it you just it just makes you so happy but if you're not as happy as you feel bad when you lose killing losing just kills you you know my son taradise coaching up in Akron universe in my son Jeff is coaching up our with it tom is retired down in Panama City and people asked well how did you like accurate well Akron is a schooling they won one game about four years in a row how would you like Akron but but if it when someone says how does he like Akron when he wins he loves it but when you lose i love you you got you wouldn't be happy and I'm lying you know if you lose ball games yeah so it's all I'll build around that but I admire you coaches I think I bet you got X my future ahead of you these are good looking boys y'all introduced a day God you know I don't coach anymore coaches for 57 years been out of it for six when I see doing men like this that makes me wish I was coaching again I wish I could coach you guys like that but anyway congratulations to all of you ah I'll see what I want to talk about Florida State I think I think Florida they better watch out for the Florida State best team I've seen so far as been Alabama and that's probably everybody i probably have dreams with that alabama is so solid that Coach does such a great job over there one of his greatest attributes is his ability to recognize talent you know to recognize talent a lot of coaches go out and signed the most popular boy and maybe into best you know you better you better recognize you better value weight shift players you know what and I think he does about as good a job was that is heated by the country and then another thing about Alabama they give him everything he I bet your University don't do that you know I've always felt like I've always felt like I know what numbers will be kind of vague but they've probably 10 maybe 12 schools in the nation that have a have a chance of winning a national championship the rest of don't have a chance they don't get close so I'm going to be better some years another but just probably about 12 them they've got the kind of program they've got the kind of opportunity where you can win a national championship Alabama's one of them I think I'll burn in soon you know but I think Georgia is I've always felt that way about Georgia you know and the coaches you've got here now really I really believe he's going to do a good job he was with me about 10 years ago i was very impressed with you you know and he's done a great job under a master denies over here giving it to the University of Georgia and when I was coming up you know I my first first coach a head coaching job was in Georgia well you didn't know that south georgia college and don't use georgia we used to have junior college football in georgia do you know that and i was i got the head coach down at night 1955 is on it i was 25 they offered me the head football head basketball as soon as I mentioned basketball if I start laughing what do you do that but there when I was athletic director head football head basket buckle I had to take basketball to get football so I took it you know and so I coach basketball my first year I didn't really think I did that we were 10 and 10 you know lost 10 on the road lost 10 at home when I was the ad so I fired me and hired Vince Gibson you remember events Vince the head coach at Kansas State head coach at Louisville head coaching at Tulane he died about three years ago he and our high school friends but every way he came into the doggone good job but anyway that's where I got started south georgia college why such great memories Bobby Dodd was up here at Tech and who vanneck was it oh yeah why one much yeah he was in Georgia Georgia yo so I used to used to go and watch tech practice in Houston much Georgia practice I learned a lot of football like that what does someone talk about Oh golly the biggest change in college football it has changed boy it's the best I've ever seen it it's the most exciting i've ever seen college football why scrambling quarterbacks is he remember you scrambler ah good you're going to make somebody a good choice man you know it but that I can't you know if his Florida State started a freshman last week and dad gum it heats scramble a lot but everybody pull the game out then i watch the quarterback in texas freshman then I what some of these on the quarterbacks tradesmen you know it and I can't believe it you know but I saw the best one last Thursday night I've ever seen it y'all see that kid at Louisville you watch him I'll tell if you don't get hurt I don't stop him I mean that kid can fly and he as quick as a cat and he's got a shotgun right there you know it and if you could have seen him the other night son believe first three times he touched the ball score round about 62 yards for one of one of me only round about 18 yards jump completely over attack he was running the ball this guy came up to tackling he jumped completely over over the top hit on his feet and ran for 27 I know never seen it that good you know but that's what's making football so exciting now these quarterbacks that can hit in the bed gum game and a play breaks down nobody get open and he breaks loose about 12 13 15 yards you know that's that's kinda made it got exciting and that's why I defense is having a hard time stopping on that's what football is nowadays I offensive people have found out what gosh I guess he's a little 245 pound breakaway guys and put him out there by himself and put just a well here by himself and this one will over here just will over here now the defense got to spit out there and get all them guys they can't cover them they can't carve them into quick it too fast you know and so- svod i stoled it mentioned that i've talked to a writer back there that football goes in cycles for ten years of defense will dominate you remember back when they had all the 76 games three to nothing I remember watching Georgia Tech and Auburn play back in nineteen i think around 58 / 21 a nice a championship they'd be taken three to nothing you know we don't see that anymore do it no that's fifty five to forty something like that but it runs in cycles were the DI offense right now we're in the we're in an offensive cycle I can't believe these scores worse in the day you know not be fit it's somebody that's what has a deep it goes go change it I tell how they can change it take them 240-pound linebackers out and get them out of 90 pound linebacker that can fly that's the whole way you're going to be able to cover them guys you know and I see that at it we played in Nebraska part of State seven times you know back in the 70s and 80s you don't beat Nebraska I mean they had I say one for death they went three national championships in four years you know it and but we played them and we beat them about three or four times her role meeting them in bowl games you know and Tom mossberg came thought you said father can I come by and watch y'all coach can i come out and sit it on your meetings well yeah we don't play him ever years-long yeah you come down there so he came down and spent two or three days with us you want our own field watch this work out and sit in our staff meetings at what he saw was we had speed my linebackers could run it might have been two hundred to five to ten but they didn't they wasn't 250 you know so he goes back to Nebraska and he takes him to go corn-fed boys they got it will about 250 pounds out it puts a little Oh 190 pound defensive backs that are strong and they're a linebacker where they can run with you you know and I got wouldn't want it won't play them no more so I dropped him Tommy beat me I dropped him well sweet Tommy when Tommy was he Clemson we've been even first four out of five years they he beat me last four out of five I dropped it no keep playing in you go you get people do something like that football in Florida is real good not because we have better flares but we have more you got I don't know how many boys you'll have in your state that side national major scholarships will have twice that made it down there why that's population Georgia six men by men with us 19 million in Florida see we got so many more boys we've got so many more boys and coaching and recruiting is a game of numbers you know if I could sign hundred guys and you can't sign but 80 I'll probably beat you you know just that extra number so what I'm gonna turn out real doggone good that the other guys didn't get but they're a lot of good football player when I went to Florida to coach in 76 there were three 18 schools now they're seven now there's something one of these schools you know so football has gotten real good down there national championships from 1983 till about 2,000 it's like the state of florida won the national championship every third year either miami and florida state of Florida win the national championship every third year you know I don't think it's happening now although florist 811 not too long ago you know but the football down there is good course kids are going all over the country i miss time i got it y'all get y'all be fine you're gonna get some cred yelling at we just won't came all that some persons cuz I tell how the story to last ten minutes yeah sure will that was interesting thing marshall university is in west fijian hunted I was up in Morgantown we're in the north part of the state they were down the southern part of the state we didn't play Marshall we didn't play Marshall Marshall plane we played East Carolina one Saturday and flew home they played them the next Saturday to flew home and crash hit the mountain came and hit the mountain on storm everybody got killed when I plane now I was offered that job two years before they offered me that job first I was assisted in West Virginia I turned it down because I thought I might could get a better job and the sign i'm sure glad i did because the boy that took that job they all got killed on that plane so anyway now they had a boy on the marshal staff a coach on the staff who i had coached at Florida State red Dawson from Valdosta Georgia red graduated from Florida State he played broke protocol about three years then he became an assistant coach at Marshall now he was over there but he decided to drive back we could recruit so the plane flew back and they all got killed he drove back and survived when I saw it on television I said well Rick I'll o bryd didn't get he'll leave didn't survive that's the connection and got them up fair with me because the you coach it comes in comes in and takes the job red says we can go up West Virginia remember we hang out of players what do you do when you complain crashing kills ever bars the guy you got well he's got about 40 freshman around there yeah so you had to be able Treasury and he wanted he liked our offense at Florida State what's Virginia so red call me can we come up and look at your film and study what y'all are doing yeah you sure can so I let them come up they gave my family look that let them watch practice they stayed about two or three days went back home so that's what that was all about you know it and I think we put a cross on our helmets just for them a green cross you know somebody said we'd offered to play a game for no we didn't do that and a lot of people talk about how sweet I wants to do that I hate to tell I didn't we don't play them you think if i play my lovin conference ends but anyway that's that's the way that came about and worked out to out somebody scored who is boy well it's it you're you're right if any of us all got to you know Terry was the head coach at Auburn tommy was a head coach it to Lane and Clemson Jeffrey was my offensive coordinator for years my oldest son did not coach my oldest daughter married a coach who was on Auburn staff and also Clemson staff yeah so when we're all sitting around the table naturally the conversation is going to get back to football you know and I used to you this snakes strong will tell you about egg true Tommy like although the stuff I tommy was a head coach at Tulane and he gets the head job at Clemson so he goes up to Clemson well we we gotta play Clemson that's the way the father-son the first father-son game should have been me and Terry but Auburn dropped us over dropped us you know so in the end Tommy and so time it goes up to Clemson so he and I get together hey Tommy since we play all Dexter y'all play us if you'll see me your brochure I'll send you hours ok and so we'll just stop brochures you know don't hang senior my next you submit yours you okay what's in them so he I say Tommy word I send it he said just put Tommy Bowden Clemson South Carolina I say you mean it'll get to you oh yeah everybody knows member if they all know me yeah just put some some South Carolina say ok he said where do you want me to send mine I said just put Bobby bond USA an imitator I told that joke to a group one time and you know what some lady sent me a letter had Bobby Bob USA and he got to yes sir what would I tell them well I would tell them number one is that's a good question and I have an answer that I have made many times because when I was coaching many times I would have a mother call me who didn't have a husband and there's a lot of them in our country today and she had cost she'd call me or write me I didn't know her she just knew about me coach Bowden I'm raising a 15 year old son and I don't have a husband he had doesn't have a daddy what can I tell him to make him a success I would tell them the same story every time I'd say you tell your son to get his priorities in order you keep letting him go out that just kind of do do what he wants to do I get priorities in life tell him his number one part is God what do you mean priority is God you tell him don't do nothing if he doesn't think God would mind him doing it I said if he wants to buy with his buddies ask yourself is do you think God mines me done Godman remind me doing this yeah he wouldn't mind me you're doing and I think God would mind me doing this I don't think he'd want me to do it don't do it you know and then second priority is your mama and daddy your family that's number two before you do anything just ask yourself with my daddy or mother mind me doing this if they don't mind you good luck son we got conscious we've all got a conscience you know we're not we know what's right or wrong yes why don't we wait till dark to do wrong you know we know what's right or wrong and and so if you feel like it's okay with him do it you know then I'd say then your next week a shin get your education this next is other people you know then that somewhere down there football or basketball or track of music whatever you whatever you like you know but just keep them in order keep them in order who wasn't that that that is a great question that is a great way I would try to sell my boys won't stand it up I'd talked to him before with men when they play the star-spangled banner I wish you would do this why because this is what our nation has done I know our nation's not perfect I know we're not perfect you have our China I said if you want to protest it protest it another way you found another way to protest it but let's go right in front of thousands of people and get some of mad at you make of mad at you and not like it but but but but again that's a good question and the book young man has a right he has a right to do that and i would but again i would try to sell him son do it another way find another way you know that's what I try to do but it's that is a very it's a spirit sensitive thing you know

Channel: FOX 5 Atlanta

Views: 929

Rating: 4.7333331 out of 5

Keywords: fsu, florida state, florida state university, touchdown club of atlanta, bobby bowden, seminoles, luncheon, speaks, atlanta, fox5atlanta, football, college, ncaa

Id: UL2OXOTiRH0

Length: 34min 2sec (2042 seconds)

Published: Mon Sep 12 2016