Terry Bowden
Terry Bowden went 185–140–2 as a head coach, 1983–2023, at Salem, Samford, Auburn, North Alabama, Akron and UL Monroe. His 1993 Auburn team claims the national title. Share
12 seasons our game records don’t credit to him come from the coach’s Wikipedia article: 1983–85 at Salem; 1987–92 at Samford; 2009–11 at North Alabama. They’re marked in the table.
- Record
- 185–140–2 career
- Seasons
- 28
- Schools
- 6
- National titles
- 1 claimed: 1993
- Alma mater
- West Virginia
- Best season
- 1993 11–0, No. 4
Season by season
| Season | School | Record | Conference finish | Bowl | AP final | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Salem * | 3–7 | T–7th | |||
| 1984 | Salem * | 8–3 | T–1st | |||
| 1985 | Salem * | 8–3 | 1st | |||
| 1986: not a college head coach | ||||||
| 1987 | Samford * | 9–1 | ||||
| 1988 | Samford * | 5–6 | ||||
| 1989 | Samford * | 4–7 | ||||
| 1990 | Samford * | 6–4–1 | ||||
| 1991 | Samford * | 12–2 | NCAA Division I-AA Semifinal L | |||
| 1992 | Samford * | 9–3 | NCAA Division I-AA First Round L | |||
| 1993 | Auburn | 11–0 | 1st (Western) | 4 | ||
| 1994 | Auburn | 9–1–1 | 2nd (Western) | 9 | ||
| 1995 | Auburn | 8–4 | 2nd (Western) | Outback Bowl L | 22 | |
| 1996 | Auburn | 8–4 | 3rd (Western) | Independence Bowl W | 24 | |
| 1997 | Auburn | 10–3 | T–1st (Western) | SEC Championship Game L; Peach Bowl W | 11 | |
| 1998 | Auburn coached six of 11 games | 1–5 | 6th (Western) | |||
| 1999–08: not a college head coach | ||||||
| 2009 | North Alabama * | 11–2 | 1st | NCAA Division II Quarterfinal L | ||
| 2010 | North Alabama * | 9–4 | T–4th | NCAA Division II Second Round L | ||
| 2011 | North Alabama * | 9–3 | T–2nd | NCAA Division II Second Round L | ||
| 2012 | Akron | 1–11 | 7th (East) | |||
| 2013 | Akron | 5–7 | T–3rd (East) | |||
| 2014 | Akron | 5–7 | 4th (East) | |||
| 2015 | Akron | 8–5 | T–2nd (East) | Famous Idaho Potato Bowl W | ||
| 2016 | Akron | 5–7 | T–3rd (East) | |||
| 2017 | Akron | 7–7 | 1st (East) | Boca Raton Bowl L | ||
| 2018 | Akron | 4–8 | T–4th (East) | |||
| 2019–20: not a college head coach | ||||||
| 2021 | UL Monroe | 4–8 | T–3rd (West) | |||
| 2022 | UL Monroe | 4–8 | 5th (West) | |||
| 2023 | UL Monroe | 2–10 | 7th (West) | |||
Each season links to the team’s season page; bowls and playoff games link to the game. Conference finishes from the Wikipedia article’s record table. * A season our game records don’t credit to him; its record is the article’s.
Players he coached
Wayne GandyConsensus All‑American, 1993- Terry DanielConsensus All‑American, 1993
- Brian RobinsonConsensus All‑American, 1994
- Willie AndersonNo. 10 pick, 1996
Every player from his seasons with a Heisman top-five finish, a national award, consensus All-America honors or a first-round pick. Photos: Wikimedia Commons, free licenses; credits on each player’s page.
How his teams did
| Kind of game | Games | Record | Won |
|---|---|---|---|
| Against ranked teams | 29 | 7–22 | 24% |
| Against top-10 teams | 15 | 4–11 | 27% |
| Against rivals | 42 | 25–16–1 | 61% |
| Conference games | 125 | 58–66–1 | 47% |
| Bowls and playoffs | 6 | 3–3 | 50% |
| Decided by 8 points or fewer | 65 | 35–29–1 | 55% |
| At home | 95 | 57–37–1 | 61% |
| On the road | 87 | 32–55 | 37% |
| At neutral sites | 6 | 3–3 | 50% |
| As our Elo’s favorite | 84 | 64–19–1 | 77% |
| As our Elo’s underdog | 104 | 28–76 | 27% |
His own 188 games on file, 1993–2023, as played (vacated wins counted, ties as half a win). Ranks are the AP poll going into the game; rivals are the ones either program’s Wikipedia article names; favorite and underdog by our own Elo rating, which reads only scores.
Against other head coaches
| Coach | Record | Their schools | Games | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frank Solich 2012–2018 | 1–6 | Ohio | 7 | |
| Jackie Sherrill 1993–1998 | 4–2 | Mississippi State | 6 | |
| Steve Spurrier 1993–1998 | 2–4 | Florida | 6 | |
| Danny Ford 1993–1997 | 4–1 | Arkansas | 5 | |
| Paul Haynes 2013–2017 | 4–1 | Kent State | 5 | |
| Chuck Martin 2014–2018 | 3–2 | Miami (OH) | 5 | |
| Gerry DiNardo 1993–1998 | 2–3 | Vanderbilt, LSU | 5 | |
| Tommy Tuberville 1995–1998 | 4–0 | Ole Miss | 4 | |
| Gene Stallings 1993–1996 | 2–2 | Alabama | 4 | |
| Lance Leipold 2015–2018 | 2–2 | Buffalo | 4 |
Terry Bowden’s record against the head coaches he met three or more times, from the games on file, as played.
Most-faced opponents
| Opponent | Games | Record |
|---|---|---|
| Ole Missseries | 7 | 6–1 |
| Kent Stateseries | 7 | 5–2 |
| Miami (OH)series | 7 | 4–3 |
| LSUseries | 7 | 3–4 |
| Bowling Greenseries | 7 | 1–6 |
| Ohioseries | 7 | 1–6 |
| Mississippi Stateseries | 6 | 4–2 |
| Alabamaseries | 6 | 3–3 |
National coaching awards
The awards- 1993 Auburn: Bear Bryant Award, Eddie Robinson and Walter Camp Coach
Career
| Years | Team | Job | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Florida State | Graduate assistant | |
| 1983–85 | Salem | Head coach | |
| 1986 | Akron | Quarterbacks coach | |
| 1987–92 | Samford | Head coach | |
| 1993–98 | Auburn | Head coach | |
| 2009–11 | North Alabama | Head coach | |
| 2012–18 | Akron | Head coach | |
| 2019–20 | Clemson | Graduate assistant | |
| 2021–23 | Louisiana–Monroe | Head coach | |
| 2024–26 | Delhi Charter School (LA) high school | Assistant coach | |
| 2026 | Monroe Greenheads | Head coach |
Every job as the infobox of his Wikipedia article lists it (CC BY-SA), assistant jobs included.
Coaching tree
Worked under
- Bobby BowdenFlorida State
- Gerry FaustAkron
- Dabo SwinneyClemson
Assistants who became head coaches
- Todd StroudWest Alabama
- Jimbo FisherFlorida State, Texas A&M
- Clint ConqueCentral Arkansas, Stephen F. Austin
- Charles KellyJacksonville State
- Rodney AllisonChattanooga
- Tommy BowdenTulane, Clemson
- Will MuschampFlorida, South Carolina
- Bill OliverChattanooga
- Chris WillisNorth Alabama
- Karl MorganMississippi Valley State, Coahoma
- Chuck AmatoNC State
- Rich RodriguezWest Virginia, Michigan, Arizona, Jacksonville State, Salem, Glenville State
- and 2 more
Worked under (3)
| Head coach | Team | Years | His job | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bobby Bowden | Florida State | 1982 | Graduate assistant | |
| Gerry Faust | Akron | 1986 | Quarterbacks coach | |
| Dabo Swinney | Clemson | 2019–20 | Graduate assistant |
Coached under him, later head coaches (14)
| Coach | With him | Head coach at | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Todd Stroud | Samford, 1987–92: defensive line and strength coach; Auburn, 1993: strength coach; Akron, 2012–18: defensive line coach | West Alabama | |
| Jimbo Fisher | Samford, 1988–90: graduate assistant and quarterbacks coach; 1991–92: offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach; Auburn, 1993–98: quarterbacks coach | Florida State, Texas A&M | |
| Clint Conque | Samford, 1990–92: running backs coach | Central Arkansas, Stephen F. Austin | |
| Charles Kelly | Auburn, 1993: graduate assistant | Jacksonville State | |
| Rodney Allison | Auburn, 1993–96: running backs coach; 1997–98: offensive coordinator and running backs coach | Chattanooga | |
| Tommy Bowden | Auburn, 1993–96: offensive coordinator | Tulane, Clemson | |
| Will Muschamp | Auburn, 1995–96: graduate assistant | Florida, South Carolina | |
| Bill Oliver | Auburn, 1996–98: defensive coordinator | Chattanooga | |
| Chris Willis | North Alabama, 2009–11: defensive backs coach | North Alabama | |
| Karl Morgan | North Alabama, 2009: defensive coordinator | Mississippi Valley State, Coahoma | |
| Chuck Amato | Akron, 2012–17: assistant head coach and defensive coordinator | NC State | |
| Rich Rodriguez | UL Monroe, 2021: assistant head coach, offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach | West Virginia, Michigan, Arizona, Jacksonville State, Salem, Glenville State | |
| Vic Koenning | UL Monroe, 2022–23: defensive coordinator | Wyoming, Illinois | |
| Broderick Fobbs | UL Monroe, 2023: running backs coach | Grambling |
Other assistants under him (9)
| Coach | With him | |
|---|---|---|
| Jeff Bowden | Salem, 1983–84: wide receivers coach; 1985: offensive coordinator; Samford, 1987–90: offensive coordinator; North Alabama, 2009–11: wide receivers coach; Akron, 2012–18: special teams and wide receivers coach | |
| Wayne Hall | Auburn, 1993–95: defensive coordinator | |
| Pete Jenkins | Auburn, 1996–98: defensive line coach | |
| A. J. Milwee | North Alabama, 2009–10: graduate assistant; Akron, 2012: quarterbacks coach; 2013–18: offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach | |
| Jeremy Moses | North Alabama, 2011: assistant coach | |
| Derek Nicholson | Akron, 2013: linebackers coach | |
| Zac Alley | UL Monroe, 2021: defensive coordinator and linebackers coach | |
| Matt Kubik | UL Monroe, 2022–23: offensive coordinator | |
| Jason Rollins | UL Monroe, 2023: special teams coach |
From coaches’ Wikipedia infoboxes (CC BY-SA) and each season’s article for its coordinators: an assistant’s seasons at a school count under its head coach in our records; jobs in the NFL and elsewhere, under the head coach whose own article lists the job that year. Names without a page here link to their Wikipedia articles.
Pay
| Year | School | Job | Contract pay | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Akron | head coachbonuses up to $225,000; $5,000 in bonuses paid; buyout $994,500 | $412,500 USA Today | |
| 2016 | Akron | head coachbonuses up to $225,000; $30,000 in bonuses paid | $412,500 USA Today | |
| 2015 | Akron | head coachbonuses up to $255,000; $10,000 in bonuses paid | $407,500 USA Today | |
| 2014 | Akron | head coachbonuses up to $255,000 | $406,000 USA Today |
USA Today’s coaches salary database (2014–17, from public-records requests to the schools; Rachel Ehlers’ copy): the season’s contract pay, school pay plus outside money, before bonuses.
Pay of public employees in their public job only: head coaches, and assistants in the seasons our records name them a coordinator, at public universities.
How he coached
Bowden’s teams went for it on 19% of fourth downs and on 31% of those where the model said go for it, passed on 52% of plays and took 24.2 seconds a play, 2012–2023.
| Season | School | Went for it on fourth | When the model said go | Pass rate | Seconds a play | EPA a play | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 10 g | Akron | 18 of 86 21% | 29% | 64% | 19.2 | +0.01 | |
| 2013 12 g | Akron | 18 of 100 18% | 33% | 52% | 20.6 | −0.05 | |
| 2014 12 g | Akron | 22 of 107 21% | 33% | 62% | 22.8 | −0.11 | |
| 2015 13 g | Akron | 14 of 112 13% | 31% | 42% | 27.4 | −0.07 | |
| 2016 12 g | Akron | 21 of 92 23% | 37% | 54% | 22.9 | +0.02 | |
| 2017 14 g | Akron | 14 of 114 12% | 27% | 53% | 26.1 | −0.07 | |
| 2018 12 g | Akron | 17 of 113 15% | 26% | 53% | 25.7 | −0.21 | |
| 2021 11 g | UL Monroe | 26 of 101 26% | 39% | 46% | 23.5 | −0.04 | |
| 2022 12 g | UL Monroe | 13 of 89 15% | 26% | 49% | 27.7 | −0.02 | |
| 2023 12 g | UL Monroe | 26 of 106 25% | 31% | 50% | 24.8 | −0.12 | |
| All 120 g | 189 of 1020 19% | 31% | 52% | 24.2 | −0.07 |
His seasons as a head coach from 2004 on, from ESPN’s play by play: fourth downs where he went for it out of every fourth-down decision; how often he went when SportsDataverse’s fourth-down model said going for it was the better call; the share of his offense’s plays that were passes; seconds of game clock per offensive play (lower is faster); and expected points added per offensive play (EPA, a measure of how much each play moved the offense toward points). The season in progress counts its games so far. SportsDataverse’s coach tendencies, from ESPN’s play by play; the EPA and the fourth-down model are SportsDataverse’s.