3:30pm EST on ABC.
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=1887859Bowden Bowl not fun for the Bowdens
ESPN.com
When Clemson finally beat Florida State in an Atlantic Coast Conference game last season, Tommy Bowden's celebration was noticeably subdued. His father's disappointment was abbreviated.
Tommy had saved his job. Bobby had been eliminated from a possible berth in the BCS title game. But family had overtaken football in college football's only father-son rivalry, muting emotions on both sides.
The annual Bowden Bowl offered myriad cute story lines when the first father-son matchup in Division I football began in 1999.
With each passing year, the reality of what it means to the Bowden family becomes a bit darker, and heavier, for the participants. Until last year, Bobby's Seminoles beat Tommy's Tigers with such frequency, the postgame punch lines about father knowing best appeared to be pre-written.
Then, suddenly, it wasn't so funny anymore. Bobby won't divulge what Tommy told him about his job status prior to last year's game, but his feelings on the matter are clear.
(snip)
The pressure to win in previous Bowden bowls didn't come close to the shared family grief present in this one. On Sept. 5, 15-year-old Bowden Madden and his father, John Allen Madden, were killed in a Hurricane Frances-related car accident minutes after they left Bobby's house in Tallahassee, where they had gone for a small Labor Day weekend gathering.
Bowden Madden, born and named after his grandfather the week after Florida State's "punt-rooskie" victory at Clemson in 1988, was an avid Clemson fan. Tommy, his uncle, sent him Clemson gear on a regular basis, finding some humor in steering his loyalty away from Bobby's Seminoles.
Tommy and Bobby delivered eulogies at the funeral services in Fort Walton Beach on Sept. 9. The next night, Bobby's Seminoles lost at Miami. A day after that, Tommy's Tigers fell apart in the closing moments of the loss to Georgia Tech.
The Bowdens have been trying to hold it together since.
...more...
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