John Cooper fondly recalls Bobby Bowden kicking his butt. © BILL HABER, ASSOCIATED PRESS Bobby Bowden’s Seminoles beat John Cooper’s Buckeyes in the 1998 Sugar Bowl, 31-14. Er, that’s not quite right. Place a period after Bowden and before kicking. Uh, that’s not it, either. Hmm, let’s just say the soft spot Coop has for the former Florida State coach resides in his heart and not on his rump. Sure, Bowden’s Seminoles thumped Cooper’s teams — 45-2 against Tulsa in 1980 and 31-14 against Ohio State in the 1998 Sugar Bowl — but the one-sided losses came at the hands of one of the most amiable and respected coaches in college football history. Bowden, who died Sunday at age 91, made even his victims feel better about their teams and themselves. © MICHAEL CONROY, ASSOCIATED PRESS *** NOTE: This photo ran in EARLY EDITIONS ONLY on 1/2/98. *** OSU vs. Florida State…
Continue Reading: Rob Oller | Bobby Bowden feasted on Buckeyes, but John Cooper still loves him
