In one of the more dramatic finishes of the BCS era, Kelvin Benjamin’s 2-yard touchdown grab against Auburn gave Florida State its first national championship in 14 years. After what some consider a lost decade, Florida State’s rise back to the top of college football was a long, arduous journey. The Seminoles endured three six-loss seasons, an academic cheating scandal and the forcing out of a legend that built the program.
In what will be a 10-part series, we take a look back on events that led to Florida State’s resurgence back to the top of the college football world. After finishing in the top 5 every year from 1987 until 2000, the Seminoles went 13 years without winning a major bowl game. In the series that looks at how FSU returned to the top, we first look at the school hiring Jimbo Fisher.
For years, Florida State had one of the premier offenses in college football. With stars like Warrick Dunn, Chris Weinke, Peter Warrick, Charlie Ward, Kez McCorvey and many more, scoring points was rarely an issue for the Seminoles.
After falling to Oklahoma in the 2001 Orange Bowl for the BCS title however, things began to change. After seven years as the school’s offensive coordinator, Mark Richt left Tallahassee to become the head man at the University of Georgia.
Rather than seeking to hire a big name, Florida State head coach Bobby Bowden stayed within the staff and hired his own son and wide receivers coach Jeff Bowden to run the offense. The Florida State offense did not go south in a hurry, but in 2001 with a freshman quarterback named Chris Rix at the helm, the Seminoles lost four games — their highest loss total in 15 years.
One down year with a freshman quarterback wasn’t thought to be a huge deal considering that FSU only started Rix due to a knee injury suffered by converted receiver Anquan Boldin. Jeff Bowden was also a first-year coordinator and improvement would come as time went on — at least so some believed. Besides, Florida State was returning a ton of talent.
Florida State followed up an 8-4 campaign in 2001 with five losses in 2002. The Seminoles were able to have a bounce-back year in 2003, going 10-3 and winning the ACC, but three losses was still an inordinate number for Florida State’s fan base which was used to competing for national championships on an annual basis.
The Seminoles managed to go 9-3 in 2004 and win the ACC in 2005, but the once vaunted Florida State offense had fell to the middle of the pack nationally both in terms of yards and points-per-game. In the midst of a 7-6 finish in 2006 that saw FSU rank 71st in total offense, Jeff Bowden was bought out by Florida State boosters for more than a half million dollars.
The legendary Bobby Bowden was hardly excited to have to replace his son Jeff, but after a long search, the offensive coordinator vacancy had been filled. Florida State had hired LSU offensive coordinator Jimbo Fisher.
The previous season, Fisher had helped transform strong-armed Jamarcus Russell into the top pick in the 2007 NFL Draft. Fisher’s offenses were rarely flashy, but one thing they had done was get results.
Fisher not only brought with him a strong offensive mind, but the former Samford quarterback had a history of being around winning environments. While at LSU, the Tigers won three SEC titles and as many BCS games including the 2004 Sugar Bowl for the school’s first national championship in nearly half a century. While serving as Auburn’s quarterback coach under another Bowden — Terry — in 1993, Fisher helped Patrick Nix lead an undefeated season.
Though the Fisher era at Florida State did not breed instantaneous results, he did enough to earn the title, “Head coach in waiting” at the conclusion of the 2007 regular season. By 2008, Florida State ranked in the top 25 in scoring offense and in 2009, FSU cracked the top 30 nationally in yards-per-game. Following the 2009 regular season finale, Bowden was forced out and the Fisher era was set to begin.
Though most Florida State fans disagreed with the way that Bowden was let go, the results under Fisher have spoken for themselves. Fisher had always been regarded as an excellent recruiter and has helped the Seminoles bring in top-tier high school talent from day one. Today, they’re back amongst the college football elite.
In four years as the head man at Florida State, Fisher has led FSU to three Atlantic division titles, three 10-win seasons, four bowl victories, two conference crowns, a pair of BCS bowl victories and its first national championship in 14 years. Fisher has done so while posting a 45-10 overall record and producing two first round picks at quarterback and the school’s third Heisman Trophy winner at the position.
No one will make the argument that Bobby Bowden didn’t build Florida State into what it is today, but after underachieving for nearly a decade, Fisher has helped restore the program to national prominence. Fisher has not been slow to give Bowden credit for making Florida State a national name. Succeeding a legend however, is never easy to do, but it’s a test that Fisher has passed with flying colors.
For all of his accomplishments prior to coming to Tallahassee, Fisher wasn’t always fully embraced by the fan base. Even after his first three seasons in which he compiled a 31-10 record, the former offensive coordinator still had his doubters. After a 14-0 season that resulted in the most points ever by a FBS program and a national title, Fisher’s doubters and the days of Florida State having to reminisce on years past are long gone.
