Speed: Part 2

By Phil Williams

“Speed: Part 2”

(post #9 in my Bobby Bowden ‘tribute series’)

(complete with NON-high-def blurry photos)

On September 15, 1979, Arizona State came to play us in Tampa, our second game of the season. At the time, I was a sophomore with a total of 5 catches for 77 yards on my FSU resume.

All the talk was about how Arizona State practiced in the blazing sun in temperatures reaching 115 degrees. In the frigging desert! Brutal. But fans, listen, that Arizona desert was drier than most of my jokes (like this one), and those Sun Devils wilted into little imps in our Florida humidity. We beat them 31-3, and I had 3 catches for 51 yards.

The next day I excitedly sat down to watch the Bobby Bowden Show to see what Coach might have to say about my contribution to our victory (I mean, it’s what we did!). When they showed my 36-yard catch, I sat on the edge of my seat and Coach Bowden said, “That’s Phil Williams from Warner Robins, Georgia (always recruiting, he was), with a nice catch from Jimmy Jordan. I tell you, I’m so proud of him. He has a heart of gold!”

Oh yeah! Could it get any better? I’m pretty sure I was glowing, a big smile covering my face.

“Anything else, Coach?” I thought.

Yes.

Sadly.

“I tell you, dagummit,” he went on. “He probably has less athletic ability than anyone else on our team…”

Well, that smile fell right to the floor. What the f%#K! My mind went into hyperdrive. “Speed is one thing, athletic ability another, Coach! So what if my straight-line speed is a bit subpar; I can out-quick just about any of them, you know that, seducing them into using their damned speed in a straight line to where I was not going to be, and therefore bringing about the separation that is needed for easy completions. Hell, that 36-yarder could have been a lot more had the ball not been under thrown. You saw that, didn’t you? Didn’t you!” All of those thoughts being dragged through by my tortured mind by my pouting ego.

(by now you may have surmised that I was a bit on the sensitive side)

But he was not through talking about me.

Thankfully.

“But like I said,” Coach Bowden continued. “He’s got a heart of gold.”

I took a deep breath and thought about it for a second, realizing that I might have overreacted a little. Yeah, probably more than a little. It was really quite lovely, as I thought about it. It was simply Coach Bowden’s way of jawboning a little AND patting me on the back in the process. Even if it did come across as a bit backhanded to a sensitive young athlete.

I mean, he knew as well as anyone of my ‘limitations’, and yet still had me out there, calling for balls to be thrown my way. What other major college coach would have dared such a thing? I would learn later that it was Coach Bowden that was truly in my corner throughout the years.

Yep, upon further review I had to admit that Coach Bowden had tossed a truly ‘heartfelt’ compliment my way.

I guess I just didn’t catch it cleanly at first.