Joe Majors and Memories of the 1958 Season

By Jim Joanos

Joe Majors was a star quarterback for Florida State in the late fifties. Reading about his recent death at age seventy caused me to remember some very exciting times in the history of FSU football.

Majors was a member of a famous Tennessee football family. His brother, Johnny, was an All-American at Tennessee and later head coach at Iowa State, Pittsburgh and Tennessee. Two other brothers played for Tennessee. Their father was a legendary high school coach.

Joe Majors played at FSU from 1956 through 59. Those were transition years for FSU football. They included the last three years that Tom Nugent coached the Seminoles and the one year that Perry Moss was there as the head man. It was a period of time in which FSU had moved from a small college powerhouse program into becoming a serious competitor in big time college football.

Nineteen Fifty-Eight was an especially significant year in FSU's football growth. There were no less than four very meaningful games played by the Seminoles in that year, games that old timers looking back place major significance upon. Joe Majors played a special role in all four of those games.

On October 25, 1958, the Seminoles went to Knoxville, Tennessee, and defeated the University of Tennessee, 10-0, in FSU's first ever victory over a Southeastern Conference team. This game had been given major news attention in that the two teams had brothers opposing each other at quarterback. FSU's two main quarterbacks were Vic Prinzi and Majors while Major's brother, Billy, was one of Tennessee's quarterbacks. Both of FSU's quarterbacks had good games, but unfortunately, Billy Majors was injured early in the game, and did not play after that. The main star of the game, however, was FSU running back Fred Pickard. Pickard from Columbia, Tennessee, had a field day carrying the ball 22 times and gaining 133 yards. His accomplishment was even more enjoyable to FSU fans since Pickard had not been recruited by the University of Tennessee as he was believed too small to play for the Volunteers. He had weighed less than 140 pounds as a high school star.

On November 7th, 1958, FSU beat Miami 17-6, in its first victory ever over that team after five straight losses. Majors started FSU's scoring in the game by intercepting a Miami pass and running it back 42 yards for a touchdown. Majors played safety on defense as the limited substitution rules of those days forced players to play offense and defense.

For the last regular season game on November 22, 1958, FSU went to Gainesville and played the University of Florida for the first time in its modern era of football. While the Seminoles did not win the game, they played competitively (losing 7-21), and accomplished a long time quest to play the Gators that even included activities in the governor's office and the legislature. The two teams have played ever since. While Vic Prinzi started the game at quarterback, Joe Majors led the team gallantly after Prinzi was injured early in the game.

A 1958 regular season record of 7-3 brought FSU an invitation to play in the Bluegrass Bowl in Louisville, Kentucky. While the game played on a frozen turf was rather dull and FSU lost, 6-15, it was, nevertheless, a big deal. It was the first time ever that FSU played before a national audience as the game was televised throughout the country by the American Broadcasting Company. Another little nugget about that game was that two rather famous television personalities described the game. Harry Wismer did the play by play and Howard Cosell, then a beginning broadcaster, did the color work.

Joe Majors would have another good year in 1959 and became FSU's all-time passer up to that point. At the end of the year, he was selected as an Honorable Mention All-American. However, despite Majors' efforts, the team under Coach Moss floundered that year and went 4-6 overall. Consequently, Joe Majors probably never received the full credit that he was due for a good career at FSU.

While at FSU, Majors was a good student, and was active in campus activities including being vice president of his senior class. After FSU, he played some professional football for the Houston Oilers in their first ever season. He later went on to Vanderbilt University Law School, became a lawyer and later a member of the Tennessee House of Representatives. Afterwards, he was a respected lobbyist in Tennessee for over 35 years.

Joe Majors will be missed by his FSU friends who cherish the wonderful memories that he helped provide.