Bowden is in good company at Clemson

By Stephen Jerdan  |   Thursday, August 03, 2006  |  Comments( 3 )

Clemson Tigers
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When Tommy Bowden first stepped foot on Clemson's campus in December 1998, many Tiger fans believed that Clemson would finally get back to the glory days of the '70s and '80s. Back then, Danny Ford was the head coach, the Tigers had won the 1981 National Championship, and Clemson was a national powerhouse.

Bowden understood what kind of microscope he would be under the moment he became the head coach for the Tigers. After all, the fans of this small country school in rural South Carolina are unusually proud of their football tradition. Coaching greats like Ford and the late Frank Howard are practically worshiped, and it is not unusual to see footballs--not baseballs--being thrown during springtime on Clemson's historic Bowman Field.

While Coach Bowden (who is entering his eighth season with the Clemson Tigers) has yet to build a team worthy of competing for national attention, he has slowly and very quietly moved up the ranks of Clemson's all-time greatest coaches.

Bowden earned his 52nd win in the Champs Sports Bowl (formerly the Tangerine Bowl), which sits third all-time. Howard, who coached Clemson from 1940-1969, holds the school record with 166 wins, and Ford (1978-89) places second, with 96.

At the start of the 2006 season, Coach Bowden will pass Jess Neely (1931-39) for number of games coached at Clemson. As of now, however, they both place third on the all-time list with 85 games coached. Howard sits atop the list with 295 and Ford has 129.

Although Bowden has yet to take the Tigers to national prominence, he has become one of Clemson's most beloved coaches. Media outlets are perpetually stating how often Bowden is on the hot seat with the university, but the fans seem to give a different perspective of their head coach.

Bowden enters the season with the most talented and experienced team he's ever had as a head coach. Clemson has become a media darling and the fashionable pick in terms of winning the ACC Atlantic Division this season. Even talks of BCS have been floating around campus since the annual Orange and White game in April.

It took Bowden awhile, but with the drastic improvement in recruiting and his ability to knock off the ACC's elite over the last three seasons, fans have every right to be optimistic about their head coach. If Bowden can keep his team consistent and avoid petty defeats to teams with lesser talent, which has been a recent problem for Clemson, the Tigers' head coach can surely expect to cement his name as one of Clemson's most successful and adored leaders.

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CommentsComments: 3  |  Sign Up  View all comments
No.1
Jonathan Powell		05:08 PM
08/03/2006
I think we win atleast 9 games this year. The whole offensive line is back, and the back field has Meriwether, Davis, Spiller. So...
No.2
Matt		08:22 PM
08/03/2006
It's about time someone gets it right! "Media outlets are perpetually stating how often Bowden is on the hot seat with the...
No.3
Clem		11:02 AM
08/06/2006
Agreed, the "realist" fans have always backed Tommy Bowden. After watching us cycle coaches as they couldn't perform, Clemson...
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