Steve Spurrier: 'Bobby Bowden and FSU threw the ball long before I did'

Longtime Florida and South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier and Bobby Bowden are no strangers. Bowden, who passed away Sunday at 91, faced Spurrier’s Gators many times while coaching at Florida State.

Spurrier is one of many college football voices around the country who have been outspoken in remembering him. In an interview with Mark Packer of SiriusXM, he shared a story he told Bobby Bowden on their final phone call.

In 1977, Spurrier was freshly cut from the NFL and wondering what to do next. He returned to Gainesville, where he began watching Gators games as a spectator.

“I was in Gainesville sitting up in the stands,” he said. “FSU came in there with Jimmy Jordan and Wally Woodham and threw the ball up and down the field on the Gators. Beat them 37-9. I was sitting up there watching and I had to do something. I had to get a job. I said, ‘Maybe if I become a coach and can throw the ball up and down the field the way these guys are doing, I can be successful.’

“That was watching FSU. (Bobby Bowden) threw the ball around long before I did. I certainly didn’t invent passing the ball. FSU did it really well even way back in ’77.”

Spurrier took over as Florida’s head coach by 1990. He faced Bobby Bowden 14 times in his career, finishing 8-5-1 against the Seminole great. Most notably he defeated Florida State for the 1996 national championship in the Sugar Bowl.

With quarterback Danny Wuerffel leading the way, Florida lead the nation with 47 points per game. Wuerffel won the Heisman Trophy that season and was taken in the fourth round of the 1997 NFL draft.

Asked what Bobby Bowden had to say about using his offensive philosophy him, Spurrier chuckled.

“He didn’t say much,” the coach said. “He’s such a class guy. Sincere Christian man. I’ve never heard him say a bad thing about anybody to tell you the truth.”

Spurrier was one of the first people to publicly respond to the news of Bobby Bowden’s death, tweeting a heartfelt message on Sunday. In the tweet, he called him one of the greatest coaches of all time and noted their rivalry in Florida.

Although they were foes on the field, it’s clear the two were close friends off it. The passing of two-time national champion Bobby Bowden leaves a void the college football world can’t replace.

But his impact on the game will never be forgotten.

Photo courtesy of Todd Kirkland/AAF/Getty Images.