Souvenirs of a Football Dynasty
By Jim Joanos
FSU's Moore Athletic Center has been demolished. Soon a huge building will rise from the ground to replace it. Within the new building, there will be new offices and facilities for FSU sports. There will be classrooms and other facilities for a number of academic programs. And somewhere in the new building will be an area dedicated to the history of sports at Florida State. It is planned that in that area there will be displays exhibiting memorabilia telling the story of the development of sports at the university. The powers that be are currently deciding what memorabilia should be collected and displayed in the various exhibits so as to best tell that story. Here are some items relating to Florida State football that I would love to see in the exhibits.
The 1904 State Championship Times-Union Cup. Football was played at the West Florida Seminary, the forerunner to Florida State, as early as 1899. There is a picture to prove it. By 1902, the institution was named, "Florida State College" and was playing intercollegiate football. In 1904, the Florida State team, then wearing purple and gold, played and beat Stetson, 19-6 on Thanksgiving Day for the state championship. In honor of the 1904 state championship, the Florida Times-Union awarded Florida State an attractive silver cup. No one seems to know what happened to that cup, but it is displayed in the team picture of that year. If it cannot be found, perhaps, a craftsman could make a replica. It would represent Florida State's first football championship. It could be accompanied by the great pictures of the early teams as well as the 1904 football that has already been given to the Florida State Varsity Club by the family of Dan Williams who played in 1904.
A 1947 Leather Red and Yellow Helmet. From 1905 to 1947, Florida State was a woman's college so there was no football. But in 1947 when the GI's came home from World War II and Florida State became coeducational again, football came roaring back. Head coach Ed Williamson and Jack Haskin, his lone assistant, put together a team with less than 60 days notice before the first of a five game schedule. While those guys, mostly military veterans, did not win any games that year, they were very competitive. They were the first Florida State football team to have helmets. The 1902-04 teams had nose guards but no helmets. The 1947 guys wore leather helmets with the ear flaps and lower part painted yellow while the top was red. Those paint colors were the closest that they could get to garnet and gold at the time. Since they were the first FSU football helmets and the only two-toned ones in school history, at least one of them should be in the museum. A better idea might be to exhibit a collection of each of the helmet designs used in FSU football through the years. There have been about twelve of them. The current design, gold featuring a garnet and white spear was adopted by Coach Bowden when he came in 1976 and has been used since.
Three Dixie Conference Championship Trophies. For three seasons, 1948, 49 and 50, Florida State was a member of the "Dixie Conference". The conference was made up of five small colleges that did not give athletic scholarships or financial aid to athletes. The other members of the conference were Mississippi College, Stetson, Tampa, and Millsaps. During the three years that FSU was in the Dixie Conference, it won eleven conference games and lost none. Consequently, FSU won the championship each of the three years. During those same three years, FSU's overall football record was 24 wins and only 2 losses. The record also included a victory over Wofford 19-6 at the end of the 1949 season and an undefeated 8-0 1950 season. The three Dixie Conference championship trophies would look good surrounded by memorabilia from those very successful years when Don Veller was the head football coach.
Bowl Game Trophies, Watches and Rings. Beginning with the Cigar Bowl 19-6 victory over Wofford after the 1949 season through last year's victory over Virginia Tech, 30-17, in the Gator Bowl, Florida State has played thirty-one post season bowl games. The overall record of the games which have been played in 12 different classics is 19 wins, 10 losses and 2 ties. FSU has played in bowls the last twenty years consecutively and 23 of the last 25 years. Very few football programs can even come close to that bowl success. An exhibit displaying the hardware from those bowl games would be something special. The championship trophies from the various bowl games would constitute a pretty good art collection on the sport of football. The Fiesta Bowl trophies are especially nice. Also the comparison between the little rubber toy footballs that the 1949 team received for going to the Cigar Bowl would make quite a contrast to the rings that the team members have received in recent years.
Nine Atlantic Coast Conference Championship Trophies. In its first nine seasons in the ACC (1992 through 2000), Florida State won the league title all nine times, winning it outright seven times and sharing it twice. That is almost unbelievable, as no other school in the forty-nine year history of the conference has won the championship more than three years in a row. FSU already ranks second in the league in total titles to Clemson that has 12 (one shared) compiled over a much longer span (1956 to 2001). Maryland is third with seven (two shared) obtained from 1953 through 2001. During its ten years in the ACC, FSU has been awarded the player of the year award, six times. The players so honored have included Charlie Ward (1992 & 93), Derrick Alexander (1994), Danny Kannell (1995), Andre Wadsworth (1997), and Chris Weinke (2000). Numerous other FSU players have been selected as All ACC players during the ten years of membership. Coach Bowden has been coach of the year in the conference already nine times (he shared it twice). An ACC exhibit featuring those nine championship trophies and some of the individual awards would be phenomenal and, hopefully, will continue to grow in future years.
Two Heisman Trophies. Each year the Downtown Athletic Club of New York honors someone as the most outstanding college football player of the year. Charlie Ward (1993) and Chris Weinke (1999) each not only won the Heisman but also a number of other awards. Would it not be great to see their hardware assembled around those two "stiff arming ball carriers" together with their jerseys and helmets? In addition, there are a number of other special awards that could be included in the exhibit. The Jim Thorpe Award recognizes the Best Defensive Back in the Nation each year. FSU has had two of them: Deion Sanders (1988) and Terrell Buckley (1991). The Butkus Award is given each year to the most outstanding linebacker. FSU also has received two of these: Paul McGowan (1987) and Marvin Jones (1992). FSU has two Lou Groza awards for the the best kicker of the year that were both won by Sebastian Janikowski (1998 and 1999). In addition to the quarterback awards won by Ward and Weinke, FSU's Casey Weldon won the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award in 1991, the same year that he was the runner-up to the Heisman Trophy. FSU also has two Lombardi Awards which honor the outstanding lineman/linebacker award each year: Marvin Jones (1992) and Jamal Reynolds (2000). FSU has already had over 200 All Americans of some category or another during its short football history. At least twenty-five of them have been consensus All Americans. Perhaps, pictures of many of those outstanding former players should be displayed.
Two Sears National Championship Trophies. Needless to say, the football exhibit should include the two national championship trophies of 1993 and 1999. It took FSU only 46 seasons to go from the 0-5 1947 team to the 1993 National Chmpionship team. And then six years later, another National Championship. The two Sears trophies should occupy a prominent spot in the museum. These two focal points should be surrounded by memorabilia from the championship seasons and games. Scott Bentley's 1993 kicking shoe should be bronzed in memory of that kick that gave FSU the final lead over Nebraska in the Orange Bowl win. Someone should also sculpt a portrayal of Peter Warrick's end zone catch to clinch the 1999 championship over Virginia Tech.
Professional Football Memorabilia. For a large number of Florida State football players, college football was more than a game to be played while at the university. For them it was a career training program as they went on to play professional football. Some of the early FSU players to make the rosters of professional teams were Tony Romeo, Bud Whitehead, Keith Kinderman, Dick Hermann, Steve Tensi, and Fred Biletnikoff. In all FSU has had at least 200 different former players play professional football. Many have played in the National Football League. This year there are nearly forty former FSU players on NFL teams. A number have played in super bowls. Fred Biletnikoff was the most valuable player of Super Bowl XI and is a member of the Professional Football Hall of Fame. An additional number of former Seminoles have been active in the Canadian Football League, including super quarterback Danny McManus who has led his teams to numerous championships. A number have played in European leagues and in arena football. A most interesting exhibit could be put together that would include trophies, jerseys and helmets from the professional careers of some of the Seminoles that continued their playing days after FSU. A corner of the exhibit could also display the photos of the numerous former FSU coaches that served as head coaches in the professional ranks.
Models of Doak Campbell Stadium. There should be models or photographs of all configurations of Doak Campbell Stadium throughout its history. The series of expansions that turned a 15,000 seat facility in 1950 into the beautiful Gothic structure that exists today and holds in excess of 80,000 spectators is quite a story. A framed copy of one of those certificates that entitled the bearer to a seat for five seasons at a total cost of fifty dollars should be displayed. The purchase of those certificates in 1949 and 1950 made Doak Campbell Stadium possible. There could also be a display of the various game tickets that have been used at Campbell. Somewhere there should also be a model of old Centennial Field where Florida State played its home games from 1947 until midway of the 1950 season. Maybe, there could even be a model train puffing along side the outside wall of old Centennial to remind fans of the old days when at least one train would come chugging by during each game.
Renegade and Osceola Memorabilia. FSU's pre-game ritual is among the most widely known in college football. With Coach Bobby Bowden's support, and approval from the Seminole Tribe of Florida, the ride to the middle of the field and the planting of the flaming spear to begin each game began in the 1978 season. Through the years, a number of outstanding students have taken that ride. An exhibit could include pictures of each of them, the horses they rode, as well as the original costume and spear. In addition, there should be something about the real Osceola and the Seminoles that are portrayed by the pre-game ritual.
Marching Chiefs Uniforms. Florida State's marching band has a longer continuous history than the football team. It goes back to the days of the Florida State College for Women. When Florida State resumed football in 1947, the band was already here and has since performed at each home game and many on the road. They wore mustard colored jump suits in the 40's, then there the black uniforms that so closely resembled Ohio State's, then the garnet ones which were my favorite, and now they wear uniforms with white jackets. A mannequin dressed in each of those uniforms would be special. Samples of the different drum major and majorette uniforms might also be interesting.
Life Size Portrait or Sculpture of Bobby Bowden. Bobby Bowden is to FSU what Knute Rockne is to Notre Dame and what Paul "Bear" Bryant is to the University of Alabama. It is very possible that Bobby Bowden will soon have more wins than any other Division 1-A coach in history. He has already been recognized as one of the top college football coaches of all time. In a most prominent location of the museum, there should be a special exhibit dedicated to him. It should contain the various national coach of the year awards that he has won including: The 1997 ABC-Chevrolet National Coach of the Year, the 1980 Bobby Dodd National Coach of the Year, the 1991 Walter Camp Coach of the Year, and the 1996 and 1999 Home Depot National Coach of the Year Awards. In addition, the exhibit could display that garnet sweatshirt that he used to wear with "Seminoles" across the front, the big old earphones, as well as the sporty "plastic man" glasses that he now wears. And let us not forget to put in one of the safari style hats that he now wears to keep the sun off his face. There are lots of special items and awards that have been given to him that he would probably love to find a place for. In addition, throw in a set of all of the books that have been written about him or by him if there is room.
There should also be proper representation in the museum in regard to the other outstanding head coaches as well as the coordinators and assistants that have meant so much to the program. Don Veller, Tom Nugent, Bill Peterson, Bob Harbison, and Mickey Andrews, to mention but a few, have made major contributions to FSU football.
Florida State's football history is amazing. I cannot wait to see those exhibits.