Bowden, now 75, shows no signs of slowing down
Florida State head coach Bobby Bowden turns 75 today and wants to keep winning so fans won’t say he’s getting too old.
With 349 victories, a dozen ACC championships and a pair of national titles on his resume, major college football’s winningest coach has no plans to quit. He even stays away from doctors as much as possible to avoid being scolded for eating too many sweets or for not getting enough exercise.
“I know this: At my age, I’ve got to win a lot of games,” Bowden said.
His father, Bob, retired at 64 and died a year later, and Bowden’s coaching idol, Bear Bryant, died a few weeks after retiring, also in his mid-60s.
“There’s only one big event left after you retire,” Bowden is fond of saying.
So working until he’s 80 isn’t out of the question for Bowden, who doesn’t smoke or drink and stays rested with daily naps. Bowden still tells high school recruits that it’s his intention to be the coach at Florida State when they complete their schooling four years down the road.
North Carolina State coach Chuck Amato, an assistant to Bowden for nearly two decades, doesn’t foresee Bowden leaving coaching anytime soon.
“He loves to be around youngsters,” Amato said. “He’s so good with them. I can’t imagine him doing anything else.”
The Seminoles shook off a sluggish start Saturday to defeat Duke 29-7 and maintain at least a chance of tying for their 13th Atlantic Coast Conference title in 14 seasons.
While a third national title is out of the picture, Bowden hopes the 11th-ranked Seminoles (7-2, 5-2) might still find a way to win the ACC and a Bowl Championship Series berth.
Chang sets record as Hawaii wins
Timmy Chang became the most prolific passer in college history Saturday night, throwing for 285 yards and four touchdowns in Hawaii’s 34-23 victory over Louisiana Tech in Honolulu.
Chang needed just 14 yards to break Ty Detmer’s NCAA career mark of 15,031 yards set from 1988-91, and overtook the Heisman Trophy winner from BYU with a 7-yard touchdown pass to Jason Rivers on Hawaii’s second series.
“It’s very special, I’m not going to lie,” Chang said. “Right now, I’m not really thinking about it, but I’m going to look back on it and be very pleased.”
The crowd erupted and gave Chang a standing ovation as the referees handed him the game ball. Chang — who finished the game with 15,303 yards — ran across the field and gave the ball and a hug to his father, Levi, on the sideline.
“I just told him I loved him and I wanted to thank him,” Chang said. “Your family is probably the most underrated people around you and my family played a big role in my life.”
Teammates poured onto the field as flashbulbs sparkled in Aloha Stadium. Detmer appeared on the stadium’s jumbotron and congratulated Chang in a recorded video message.
“He’s a special guy,” Bulldogs coach Jack Bicknell said. “He made the big plays and he’s a great kid.”
On the first play of the second quarter, the fifth-year senior from Honolulu also broke the NCAA career completions mark of 1,231 held by Texas Tech’s Kliff Kingsbury.
Chang finished 26 of 42, and Rivers caught eight passes for 137 yards for Hawaii (4-4, 4-3 Western Athletic Conference).
Louisiana Tech fell to 4-5, 3-2.
Same old story atop poll
Southern California and Oklahoma made it 11 for 11 in the Associated Press Top 25 on Sunday.
The top-ranked Trojans and second-ranked Sooners have lined up that way in the rankings since the preseason.
The stretch of straight polls with the same Nos. 1 and 2 is the longest since 1987, when No. 1 Oklahoma and No. 2 Nebraska went unchanged for the first 11 polls of the season.
USC and Oklahoma overcame double-digit deficits Saturday to remain unbeaten.
The Trojans fell behind 13-0 at foggy Oregon State, but rallied to win 28-20.
The Sooners were 14 points down three times in the first half at Texas A&M, before Jason White’s fifth touchdown pass of the game midway through the fourth quarter provided the winning margin in a 42-35 victory.
Auburn stayed at No. 3 while Wisconsin and Cal flipped spots, the Badgers moving up to No. 4 and the Golden Bears falling to No. 5. Texas, Utah, Georgia, Michigan and Virginia rounded out the top 10.
Boise State is at No. 14 and UTEP, led by former WSU coach Mike Price, moved up to No. 23.