The Bowden Bowl
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| Bobby (FSU) | Tommy (CU) |
|---|---|
| (5) | (4) |
| 1999 2000 2001 2002 2004 |
2003 2005 2006 2007 |
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The Bowden Bowl is an athletic rivalry between father and son coaches in the Atlantic Coast Conference college football: the father, ledgendary coach Bobby Bowden of the Florida State Seminoles and the son, Tommy Bowden of the Clemson University Tigers.
As both Florida State and Clemson are in the same division of the Atlantic Coast Conference for football, the two teams play every year in a game that has become known as "The Bowden Bowl". Their first meeting, in 1999, was the first time in Division I-A history that a father and a son met as opposing head coaches in a football game. As of September 3, 2007, Bobby holds the edge in the series, leading 5-4 with all four losses within the last five seasons. Tommy's four wins in the series remain the only times the son has ever beaten the father when facing off as head coach in any of America's four major sports.[citation needed] Tommy Bowden's first win came in 2003 on his father's birthday, defeating then 3rd ranked FSU removing them from national title contention.
One Bowden Bowl was scheduled between Auburn and Florida State for 1999 when Terry Bowden was the coach at Auburn. However, Terry's midseason resignation in 1998 ended the possibility of a Bowden Bowl. Auburn later used the buyout clause in the contract to get out of this matchup.
