Quarterback Christian Ponder admits it will be strange.
When he takes the first snap in Saturday's season opener against Samford, it will mark a new era in Florida State football. He will be the first quarterback since 1975 to be on the field without Bobby Bowden as the head coach.
Jimbo Fisher, who spent the past three years as the "head-coach-in-waiting," will now wait no more. It's his program and he has overhauled much of the way FSU has been doing things.
The legendary Bowden plans to be in Panama City, where he keeps a home near the beach. But his presence will be everywhere at the stadium.
"It hasn't really sunk in yet and probably won't until the game," Ponder said. "Coach Bowden was probably the biggest reason I came to Florida State and not having him on the sideline will be different.
"It's crazy to think we had, what, 34 or 35 years of a constant and now he's gone. But we've been working so hard [that] you don't think about it and you don't notice as much."
Ponder revealed that when he was a high school sophomore he attended an FSU reunion with his father, David, who played defensive tackle under Bowden in the early 1980s. Bobby Bowden grabbed Christian's arm and announced, "We could use this arm one day." Sure enough, that was the selling pitch for Ponder to try and follow his father to FSU.
Now, it's Ponder who has become the face of the Seminoles program. Because of his academic prowess and passing production as a two-year starter, the Seminoles chose to launch a Heisman Trophy campaign, complete with a website, for Ponder.
It has added more pressure on his shoulders. This is supposed to be a breakthrough season for the Seminoles, the year when they shed a mediocre past 10 years.
So much is riding on whether Ponder can stay healthy, stay consistent, and keep this team winning. The Seminoles should not have any problem beating Samford, but the schedule quickly ramps up with games against Oklahoma and Brigham Young in September.
"I've been given a heck of an opportunity to get this thing turned around, and I get to be part of this whole transition with coach Fisher," Ponder said. "I have to take advantage of it and leave a mark on this program."
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Florida State Seminoles
