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Terry Bowden      

College Football Coach, Broadcast Analyst, Motivational Speaker

Terry Bowden has made a significant impact in both the broadcasting industry and as a head coach in college football. He quickly rose to prominence as one of the top studio analysts in college football, co-hosting television's most distinguished studio show on ABC Sports. In 2004, Bowden transitioned from the studio to game analysis, where his deep knowledge of the game and ability to break down plays have been showcased. Known for his energy and insightful commentary, he has captivated viewers across the country, both in the booth and beside John Saunders at ABC's New York City studio.

Prior to his broadcasting career, Bowden achieved notable success as a college football coach. Over a 15-year career, he compiled an impressive record of 159-92-2, marked by a high winning percentage of 68%. As head coach of the Auburn Tigers, he won 73% of his games and achieved the best opening five-year run of any head coach in the school's history. At Auburn, he garnered national attention by winning his first 20 games and achieving an undefeated season in 1993. That year, Bowden swept virtually every national coach of the year award, including the Walter Camp, Scripps Howard, Football News, Toyota, and the Paul "Bear" Bryant Award.

Bowden began his coaching career at Salem College, where he won the WVIA Conference Championship twice and quickly established himself as a transformative leader. He then moved to Samford University, leading the team to a 9-1 record in his first season and transitioning them from Division III to Division I-AA. Recognized for his early successes, Bowden was named head coach at Auburn on December 17, 1992, marking the beginning of a highly impactful tenure.

Born into a prominent college football family, Bowden has contributed significantly to his family's legacy in the sport. His father, Bobby Bowden, turned Florida State into a national champion, and his brother Tommy has been a head coach at Clemson. Beyond coaching, Terry Bowden has also built a reputation as a dynamic motivational speaker, drawing on his vast experiences in sports to deliver messages of leadership, teamwork, and motivation with humor and effectiveness.

Since transitioning from coaching, Bowden has continued to influence the field of college football through his work as a broadcast analyst for ABC, ESPN, and Westwood One, and as a columnist for Yahoo! Sports.com. His ability to connect football strategies to business and personal growth has made him a sought-after speaker at various national engagements. Bowden’s career trajectory from a successful coach to a prominent broadcaster and motivational speaker showcases his adaptability and enduring influence in the realm of college football and beyond.

Speech Topics

It All Starts With Loyalty

Teamwork

Leadership

Motivation

You Can Make a Difference

A man was walking down the beach and noticed that there were thousands of star fish all across the sand that had crawled out of the ocean due to the red tide. Although the water had cleared, the sun was taking its toll and the starfish were drying up and dying. As the man continued to walk down the beach, he noticed that another man walking in front of him was bending over every now and then to pick something up, and each time that he did he got a little closer. Finally, the man caught up with the other fellow and asked what he was doing. The man said that the star fish were dying in the sun and that he was putting them back in the water. “But there are millions of them. What kind of difference do you think you can make?” To that, the man bent over and picked up another star fish, tossed it into the water and said, “Well, I guess I made a difference to that one.” Each of us has the ability…no, the obligation…to make a difference in the lives of others. So often we want to pat ourselves on the back when we do something special even for our own children. However, true success comes from making a difference in someone else’s child…or more importantly, in a child you don’t even know. I call it planting shade trees under which you’ll never sit.

Motivating the Benchwarmers

I knew my father (Bobby Bowden, the winningest coach in college football) was going to be a great football coach twenty-five years ago. We were sitting around the Thanksgiving table and he said, “I’m so disappointed that I don’t have any grandsons that I’ve created a trust and I’ve put $100,000 in that trust and I’m going to put that trust in the name of the first one of my children that provides me with a grandson.” Then he said, “Let’s bow for a word of prayer”…and when he looked up….. we were all gone. Now that’s motivation! You don’t need to motivate that top salesman any more than you do the star running back. Those guys were born to win. If you want to build a winner then you better find a way to inspire the back up lineman, the walk-on, and the guy who never gets off the bench. Those are the guys who are ultimately going to get you over the top. I call it the But For Rule. Getting each and every person in the organization to believe that but for their effort, but for their ability, but for their very job, we can not be successful.

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Win With Teamwork

Being a winner is not always about having the best players, but having the players that play their best together. Teamwork is the ability to direct individual accomplishments toward organized objectives. It is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results. You can throw money at all your problems if you want, but it doesn’t cost one thin dime to motivate each and every person within your organization to be their very best. Ultimately, it’s about getting our eleven to play better than their eleven.

Audacity: The Belief You Can Accomplish Anything

No leader has ever accomplished anything great without audacity. If a leader is filled with high ambition and he pursues his aims with audacity and strength of will, he will reach them in spite of all obstacles. After our undefeated season at Auburn University in 1993, I asked our football team what they wanted to accomplish in 1994. Every single young man said they wanted to go undefeated again. My first impression was that this was crazy – nobody wins every game two years in a row. Then I thought again. This was not crazy …it was audacity!

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News

Michigan opens as a 35 1/2-point favorite over Terry Bowden and ...
No. 11 Michigan (2-0) opened up as a 35 1/2-point favorite over Akron on Sunday, according to VegasInsider.com. Terry's Bowden's Zips will travel to Michigan ...
Akron coach Terry Bowden: 'We knew we could beat them' | Detroit ...
The Zips couldn't complete a game-winning drive with seconds remaining on the clock Saturday in Ann Arbor. But they might have shown signs that the program ...
The victory over Kent State is a sign Terry Bowden is making some ...
With three victories, the Zips have won as many games as they did in the last three seasons combined.
Terry Bowden looking to spark Akron in his second season at the ...
After going 1-11 last season, Terry Bowden hopes to turn things around at Akron ... From talking to him, it's pretty clear that Terry Bowden has taken to the city of ...

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