Putting together the staff

[johnnyzip84]

Here's a local story on Zip QB coach AJ Milwee.

[NewZipsFan]

Here's a local story on Zip QB coach AJ Milwee.

Well -- it was a little story, for sure.... I'm sure there will be in depth features on AJ as soon as the season starts - if not sooner. Coach Bowden knew that AJ had one of the smartest football minds he'd been around in a very long time when he met AJ in 2009. He recognized a lot of similar attributes that he saw in young Jimbo Fisher about 28 years ago.

[johnnyzip84]

Well -- it was a little story, for sure.... I'm sure there will be in depth features on AJ as soon as the season starts - if not sooner. Coach Bowden knew that AJ had one of the smartest football minds he'd been around in a very long time when he met AJ in 2009. He recognized a lot of similar attributes that he saw in young Jimbo Fisher about 28 years ago.

Thanks for the insight on Coach Milwee, NZF

I've always enjoyed real life stories that have a "full circle" twist. The older Zip fans will probably remember the very 1st game Gerry Faust was head coach of the Zips. Coach Faust lead the Zips to a 35-0 win over (then NAIA) Salem College of West Virginia that Sept night in 1986. Of course, Coach Bowden was leading the Zip QBs in the Rubber Bowl that game as well. And he would later be the head coach for Salem itself.

A sellout crowd of 35000 witnessed somewhat of a yawner as Salem was not providing much competition, especially after their highly touted QB was forced out of the game early in the 1st half. Salem was moving the ball pretty well up until then. And just who was Salem's starting QB for that game? Why it was none other than Jimbo Fisher.

[K92]

Thanks for the insight on Coach Milwee, NZF

I've always enjoyed real life stories that have a "full circle" twist. The older Zip fans will probably remember the very 1st game Gerry Faust was head coach of the Zips. Coach Faust lead the Zips to a 35-0 win over (then NAIA) Salem College of West Virginia that Sept night in 1986. Of course, Coach Bowden was leading the Zip QBs in the Rubber Bowl that game as well. And he would later be the head coach for Salem itself.

A sellout crowd of 35000 witnessed somewhat of a yawner as Salem was not providing much competition, especially after their highly touted QB was forced out of the game early in the 1st half. Salem was moving the ball pretty well up until then. And just who was Salem's starting QB for that game? Why it was none other than Jimbo Fisher.

JZ84, it's posts like this one that make you the ZN.O legend you are. Bravo, sir!

[Buckzip]

Thanks for the insight on Coach Milwee, NZF

I've always enjoyed real life stories that have a "full circle" twist. The older Zip fans will probably remember the very 1st game Gerry Faust was head coach of the Zips. Coach Faust lead the Zips to a 35-0 win over (then NAIA) Salem College of West Virginia that Sept night in 1986. Of course, Coach Bowden was leading the Zip QBs in the Rubber Bowl that game as well. And he would later be the head coach for Salem itself.

A sellout crowd of 35000 witnessed somewhat of a yawner as Salem was not providing much competition, especially after their highly touted QB was forced out of the game early in the 1st half. Salem was moving the ball pretty well up until then. And just who was Salem's starting QB for that game? Why it was none other than Jimbo Fisher.

I was at that game. Good start to the Faust era.

[NewZipsFan]

I was at that game. Good start to the Faust era.

These are the kind of stories that can actually "build" the Akron legacy. When Coach Bowden left Akron to accept the head job at Samford (his parents' alma mater and 1st team that his father, Bobby, ever coached at - it was Howard College at the time), he got Jimbo to transfer to Samford in 1987 - and as a Division III school (with plans to move directly to D-1AA the next season) they set many national offensive records.

How many of you have actually read Coach Bowden's "official bio"? It is on his speaker website - and includes everything up to his 3 seasons at UNA. Its fascinating - and really shows that he has NEVER lost anywhere! Imagine retiring from one profession (coaching) at 42 years old and already having 111 wins, a 73% winning percentage in the SEC and 68% overall. If some young coach did that today, he would be annointed King, or something... especially in the state of Alabama. lol.. And then - launching a broadcasting and speaking career where he was incredibly successful as well.

Here it is below --- (Terry Bowden - Long Bio as of 2009 )

Terry Bowden has made the same dramatic entrance into the broadcasting industry as he did as a head coach in college football. He has quickly become one of the top television and radio analysts in college football while captivating audiences all over the country.

Although Terry Bowden's bright future is firmly planted in broadcasting, it all began walking the sidelines as a head football coach. Looking back to those years tells you two things about Terry - number one, he's a winner; and number two, don't ever underestimate him.

As a college football coach, Bowden was enormously successful, compiling a 15 year record of 111-53-2 and an impressive winning percentage of 68%. As head coach of the Auburn Tigers, he won 73% of his games and posted the best opening five-year run of any head football coach in school history. Prior to becoming head football coach at Auburn, Bowden built two programs from the ground up as head coach at Salem College and Samford University. As the nation's youngest head coach at age 26, it didn't take long for winning to become Terry Bowden's trademark. At Salem, he inherited a football program which had gone 0-9-1 the year before he arrived, but he quickly turned them into a winner.

Salem won the WVIA Conference Championship, its second in 80 years, in Bowden's second season. It was the first of two straight championships for Bowden and Salem. He won 19 of his last 25 games, led the nation in offense both years and played in the NAIA national playoffs both years. He was an assistant coach at Akron for former Notre Dame head coach Gerry Faust in 1986 before taking the helm at Samford in 1987. Inheriting a Samford program which had won just six games in three years prior to his arrival, Samford was 9-1 his first year, tying the record for the best season in school history.

The Bulldogs led the nation in total offense (523 ypg) and scoring offense (51.7 ppg), both national Division III records. The team's 40 touchdown passes were also a national season record, but that was only the beginning for Samford and for Terry Bowden. Bowden engineered and directed Samford's move from Division III non-scholarship football to Division I-AA scholarship football.

With only one freshman class on scholarship, the Bulldogs went to a full Division I-AA schedule in 1989. By 1991, Samford was competing for the national championship. The 1991 Samford team had the best record in school history, 12-2, and made the Division I-AA national semifinals. The Bowden magic was working again. Playing in the shadow of Auburn, Alabama and the Southeastern Conference, Bowden had developed the Samford program into one of the nation's strongest, most competitive Division I-AA programs. In five years, Samford had successfully made the difficult transition from non-scholarship football to scholarship football, and was competing for titles.

For Terry Bowden, the next step was inevitable. It came on Dec. 17, 1992 when he was named head coach at Auburn. Auburn president Dr. William V. Muse called Bowden the perfect choice to lead Auburn Football into the 21st Century. Terry Bowden's first bio as head football coach at Auburn began: "At 36, Terry Bowden, one of the youngest coaches in Division I-A football, is poised on the threshold of greatness…" No one knew how close greatness was. Yet, five months after that first bio was written, Terry Bowden had accomplished a feat that no other Division IA coach had ever accomplished. He had gone undefeated and untied in his first year as a Division IA head coach, a perfect 11-0. Bowden swept virtually every national coach of the year award in his rookie season including Walter Camp, Scripps Howard, Football News, Toyota and the Paul "Bear" Bryant Award presented by the Football Writers Association.

He was again a finalist following his second season at Auburn. By the end of his second season on the Plains, the Tigers had reeled off 20 straight wins, an Auburn record. Also during his helm at Auburn, Bowden became the first college coach in 50 years to win his 100th career game by his 40th birthday. As a student-athlete at West Virginia University, he lettered two years as a running back (1977-78), held a 3.65 GPA in accounting, the highest GPA on the football team, and graduated Magna Cum Laude. He did post graduate work at Oxford University in England, and earned a Juris Doctorate degree from the Florida State University School of Law in 1982 while a graduate assistant coach at FSU.

He was born into the most famous and successful college football family. His father, Bobby Bowden, turned Florida State into a national champion and is currently the winningest coach in division 1A history. His brother Tommy is the head coach at Clemson, and brother Jeff is the offensive coordinator at Florida State. During the decade of the 1990’s, all three Bowden head coaches led their teams to undefeated seasons - a feat that will likely never be repeated. Terry Bowden certainly did his part to add luster and glory to the first family of college football. In 1998, Bowden left his stellar coaching career behind and made the exciting move into broadcasting.

Terry Bowden has been ultra-successful as a student, an athlete, and a college football coach. He is a much sought after motivational speaker. The qualities that have made him successful throughout his life - enthusiasm, contagious optimism, confidence and work ethic - are the same qualities that he now relies on as a television and radio analyst for college football.

He can be heard daily in central Florida hosting The Terry Bowden Show on ESPN Radio, weekly on “ The Coach’s Show” on Sirius Satellite Radio, weekly during football season as the Color Analyst for Westwood One’s College Football Game of the week, and his articles can be read as the expert football analyst for YahooSports.com.

[johnnyzip84]

Thanks for straightening my memory out a little, NZF. I obviously forgot Coach Bowden's Salem stint PRECEDED his year at Akron. Maybe that helped give Faust and AD Adams the idea to bring Salem in for the opener?

I have seen Coach's "speaking website" and I keep waiting for the bio to be updated to include the Akron head coaching gig

There's no doubt. When reading through all of that success, it's really crazy that it took this long until a program like Akron reached out to him.

[NewZipsFan]

Thanks for straightening my memory out a little, NZF. I obviously forgot Coach Bowden's Salem stint PRECEDED his year at Akron. Maybe that helped give Faust and AD Adams the idea to bring Salem in for the opener?

I have seen Coach's "speaking website" and I keep waiting for the bio to be updated to include the Akron head coaching gig

There's no doubt. When reading through all of that success, it's really crazy that it took this long until a program like Akron reached out to him.

It wasn't even updated for his three seasons at UNA

But if you read the ABJ this morning, Coach Bobby Bowden did call it a "nice little job"... LOL!

[Sergeant Zip]

Well -- it was a little story, for sure.... I'm sure there will be in depth features on AJ as soon as the season starts - if not sooner. Coach Bowden knew that AJ had one of the smartest football minds he'd been around in a very long time when he met AJ in 2009. He recognized a lot of similar attributes that he saw in young Jimbo Fisher about 28 years ago.

Terry Bowden will promote quarterbacks coach A.J. Milwee to offensive coordinator.

[Captain Kangaroo]

Terry Bowden will promote quarterbacks coach A.J. Milwee to offensive coordinator.

Milwee looks like he's 18 years old. The kid must be a genius.

Funny entry from your link: Wisconsin: Barry Alvarez will earn $118,500 for coaching the Badgers in the Rose Bowl. If Wisconsin beats Stanford, Alvarez will receive a $50,000 bonus.

Must be nice to appoint yourself coach for a month, and give yourself $118,500?

Make it rain, Barry!!

[ZachTheZip]

Milwee looks like he's 18 years old. The kid must be a genius.

He took a 4-year backup from the FCS and turned him into one of the top statistical QBs in the FBS in less than a year of working with him. I'd say he's pretty good.

[K92]

A.J. Milwee's journey to O.C. was a very short one. He has got to be the youngest coordinator in FBS. Thinking back to last year when the staff was being put together makes me scratch my head a little bit though, since Terry was so adamant about the offense being his baby. He said on more than one occasion how important it was to have Coach Amato on staff to run the defense because Terry had his hands full with the offense.

I wonder what changed?

Is Coach Milwee such a hotshot up and comer that Terry promoted him to keep here a little while longer? Maybe A.J. is "just that brilliant" and O.C. is where he can be best utilized?

Did Terry get a little overwhelmed handling both the Head Coach & Coordinator roles?

Will Coach Bowden have more involvement now with the defense or is that still in the hands of Amato & staff?

Very interesting.

[LZIp]

A.J. Milwee's journey to O.C. was a very short one. He has got to be the youngest coordinator in FBS. Thinking back to last year when the staff was being put together makes me scratch my head a little bit though, since Terry was so adamant about the offense being his baby. He said on more than one occasion how important it was to have Coach Amato on staff to run the defense because Terry had his hands full with the offense.

I wonder what changed?

Is Coach Milwee such a hotshot up and comer that Terry promoted him to keep here a little while longer? Maybe A.J. is "just that brilliant" and O.C. is where he can be best utilized?

Did Terry get a little overwhelmed handling both the Head Coach & Coordinator roles?

Will Coach Bowden have more involvement now with the defense or is that still in the hands of Amato & staff?

Very interesting.

GT's article talks about it some. Obviously TB is still going to be watching over the offense and have some say, but it lets him pay attention to the rest of the team more as well. Like a head coach should do.

[Dr Z]

Is Coach Milwee such a hotshot up and comer that Terry promoted him to keep here a little while longer? Maybe A.J. is "just that brilliant" and O.C. is where he can be best utilized? Did Terry get a little overwhelmed handling both the Head Coach & Coordinator roles? Will Coach Bowden have more involvement now with the defense or is that still in the hands of Amato & staff? Very interesting.

Knowing no inside information. My guess is that the title is a reward for hard work and commitment. I would guess AJ has a lot of input from Sunday to Friday, but TB will still call the plays. Great question for TB. Sharing?

[Sergeant Zip]

From footballscoop: Akron: We have confirmed what we told you we expected to happen before Christmas. Terry Bowden is bringing offensive coordinator Alan Arrington, Jeff Bowden and A.J. Milwee to Akron.

See this about Alan Arrington. Dead at 43.