Growing up in Spartanburg, South Carolina and helping lead powerhouse Byrnes High School to a state championship as a senior, Everett Dawkins was just more than an hour away from Clemson University. But rather than play at the closest ACC school, Dawkins spent five years in Tallahassee, helping make Florida State a champion again after a run of mediocrity.
“It was part of our goal as a class was to get Florida State back to the glory days,” Dawkins said. “We wanted to be part of that process. We always had the right players but we just needed to get everything right on the football side.”
Dawkins, a defensive tackle, received a medical redshirt in 2008 after appearing in three games before recording 15 tackles as a freshman in 2009. Florida State won four of its final six games that season to finish 7-6 and complete a 33rd straight winning season.
FSU defeated West Virginia 33-21 in the Gator Bowl to send legendary head coach Bobby Bowden out a winner. The following year, Bowden was replaced by offensive coordinator Jimbo Fisher — a move Dawkins said he knew was coming when he committed to FSU.
“I knew coming in that Coach Fisher was going to be the head coach,” Dawkins said. “When I left my parents, they knew I was in great hands and with people who were going to make sure I was on the right path every second I was away.”
Dawkins said the legendary Bowden and new head coach Fisher were both great coaches, but took very different approaches.
“Coach Bowden was more laid back; he was definitely more of an overseer,” Dawkins said. “Jimbo’s more of a hands-on type of coach; he’s on the field more with the guys. He calls the plays, but he would come over to the defensive side and take a peek and make sure everything there was right.”
During Fisher’s first season of 2010, Dawkins had the best statistical year of his FSU career, finishing with 39 total tackles, 6 for loss, and 2.5 sacks. That season, the Seminoles won 10 games for the first time since 2003, snapped a 6-game losing streak to rival Florida and reached the ACC title game for the first time since 2005. FSU fell to Virginia Tech 44-33 for the conference crown, but defeated SEC East champion South Carolina in the Chick-fil-A Bowl.
“It showed we were on the way back,” Dawkins said. “Being able to beat Florida for the first time in six years, that was big. We just kept climbing and climbing.”
Dawkins started all 13 games as FSU went 9-4 in 2011. Dawkins earned a degree in sociology in December of that year, but had a year of eligibility remaining. The following season, Dawkins would be part of a stout defense that helped Florida State have its best year in more than a decade.
As a senior in 2012, Dawkins was named second team All-ACC as the Seminoles tied a then school-record with 12 victories. Florida State captured its first ACC championship in seven years with a 21-15 victory over Georgia Tech and first major bowl victory in 13 years with a 31-10 Orange Bowl win over BCS buster Northern Illinois.
For the first time since 2000, FSU finished in the top 10 in each major poll. The victories over the Yellow Jackets and Huskies to close 2012 would begin a streak of 29 straight victories for the Seminoles, which easily bested the previous school-record of 17. Florida State captured its third national championship in 2013 — the year after Dawkins’ departure — and a third straight ACC title last season.
“Just to go from 7-6 to ACC champions, it was just a good feeling,” Dawkins said. “It was a great experience to be part of something like that and to build the program and be part of that streak. Just being able to see the success after we left is good just because you know those kids.”
Dawkins would go on to be selected in the seventh round of the 2013 NFL Draft by the Minnesota Vikings and spent time with the Dallas Cowboys, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New York Giants. Dawkins currently plays for the Tampa Bay Storm of the Arena Football League and leads the team in forced fumbles and tackles for loss.
“Playing Arena Football is definitely different,” he said. “You don’t have a lot of time to get to the quarterback as you would in regular football and there’s a lot of different rules. It’s an offensive league with how quickly the ball is thrown with the quarterback literally taking 2-yard steps. It’s hard to get sacks. Defensive linemen can only rush outside for 90 percent of the game, but it’s been a fun experience and I’ve been enjoying myself.
“I’m trying to get back to the big leagues,” Dawkins added. “That’s one of my main goals.”
Aside from football, Dawkins is the founder and CEO of the nonprofit Underdog Kids. Underdog Kids does most of its work in Florida, Texas and Dawkins’ home state of South Carolina. The nonprofit does everything from providing clothing, food and gifts to simply mentoring.
“I always wanted to start a foundation because I came from a background where a lot of kids didn’t have fathers growing up,” Dawkins said. “They didn’t have leaders or people to lead them in the direction. I’ve always wanted to give back. Over time, I see the foundation growing.”
Dawkins said he’s had more than 40 people and organizations donate. With Dawkins playing in the AFL, Underdog Kids wasn’t able to hold one this year, but at a football camp it hosted last year, Dawkins said more than 50 volunteers helped make it a success.
According to Dawkins, the foundation isn’t interested in receiving acclaim, but simply wants to make a difference in the lives of young people. The foundation does provide gifts around the holiday season, but Dawkins said the hard work is put in year round.
“It doesn’t have to be a holiday or anything; there’s kids that struggle in everyday life,” he said. “One thing my foundation is great about is we don’t want the credit for anything we do. I think it was around Christmas time and one lady asked if I wanted to put my name on a package to let them know it was from me. I was like ‘no, put your name on it’.
“I’d rather the kids think they were getting something from their parents. Anything we can do to help, we’ll do,” Dawkins added. “Every penny has gone to a good purpose. There’s a lot more stuff that we’d love to be able to do. It’s still a small foundation that’s building.”
Dawkins’ road from Spartanburg to Tallahassee to Minneapolis to New York to Tampa has been a long one, but the former FSU standout said he remains close to his alma mater.
“I know it’s always a call away,” Dawkins said of Florida State. “It was always a tight-knit type of family environment. I still keep in touch with a lot of guys.
“Some of the guys I played with are there as well as Coach Fisher and some of the staff, Dawkins added. “I try to go to games whenever my schedule permits. That’s the place where I got my opportunity to shine. To say that I started 30-something games there, it’s an amazing feeling.”
Be sure to follow former Florida State defensive tackle Everett Dawkins on Twitter @TheUnderDog_79.
