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Show Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2009 StatesmanSports Page 7 FOOTBALL Why are you living with a bunch of farm animals? Check out Forest Gate & University Pines Apartments $1475 for Spring Semester • Fully Furnished • Utilities Included • Private Bedrooms • Great Parking & Location • Wireless Internet & TV 454 N 400 E forestgatemanagers@live.com 435-752-1516 Receive $100 off rent if you sign up for next school year by 02/07/10! Perfect Partner Let us help plan your big day You Best Choice for Wedding Invitations & paper goods JUNIOR QUARTERBACK DIONDRE BOREL drops back for a pass during a home game against San Jose State.The Aggies battled the conditions en route to a 24-9 victory over the Spartans. PATRICK ODEN photo Ags headed in right direction By ADAM NETTINA staff writer There was good, there was bad and there was even some ugly. But after defeating Idaho (7-5) by a score of 52-49 Saturday, Utah State (4-8) finished its season on a high note, in the process giving new meaning to the once worn-out mantra "just wait until next season." USU head coach Gary Andersen may not have qualified as a finalist for the Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year award with his inaugural 4-8 campaign in Logan, but the former Utah defensive coordinator proved that positive change is on its way and it will be here sooner rather than later. Just consider that USU's four wins this year were the most by any Aggie football team since 2002, with the team's three conference wins matching the previous best mark during the Aggies' five-year run in the WAC. All this coming with a total overhaul in offensive and defensive schemes, within arguably the most competitive WAC environment of the decade — two factors not usually conducive to success for a program looking to reverse a decade of losing frustration. Yet, Andersen somehow found a way to not only make the Aggies one of the WAC's most exciting teams to watch, but he found a way to make them one of the most competitive. Case in point, USU's eight losses doesn't tell the complete story of the sea- son, a season that could have easily seen the Aggies achieve bowl eligibility had a few plays gone their way. It was a sometimes frustrating road, but one still full of promise. In a season in which "See it. Hear It. Feel It. Believe It." was to become the rallying cry for the perennial conference bottom feeders, the Aggie offense reached new heights, while the defense showed flashes of brilliance. Guided by the innovative genius of former New Mexico and Michigan State offensive coordinator Dave Baldwin, the Aggie offense averaged 439.33 yards per game on the year, good for 16th best in the nation. That's an increase of more than 100 yards per game when compared to last year's offense, which finished 87th in the country. And while the USU's defense didn't post any major statistical turnaround, it came up big when it had to — an impressive feat given the numerous injuries to key playmakers. While the 2009 season was filled with more than its fair share of excitement and positives, the best part about it for Aggie fans is that it should provide a preview of even better things to come. Yes, USU will lose some fantastic players to graduation on defense — including a potential NFL-bound safety in James Brindley — but the team will also bring back a plethora of talented, and now veteran, playmakers. Diondre Borel, who threw for 369 yards and four touchdowns against Idaho, figures to be one of the best dual-threat quarterbacks in the WAC, while running back Robert Turbin (1,296 yards rushing, 17 total TDs this season) is well on his way in cementing himself as perhaps the best all-purpose playmaker in Aggie history. On defense, the Aggies bring back one of the rising stars in the WAC in linebacker Bobby Wagner, who concluded the year with a team-high 114 total tackles. Skeptics may say that the 2008 Aggie team finished the season in much the same way as this year's team did, and, for that, they do have a point. But in their win over Idaho Saturday, the Aggies proved one thing the 2008 team didn't: the ability to learn lessons from past losses. Jumping out to a 31-7 lead on the Vandals midway through the second quarter, the Aggies almost allowed Idaho to come back and win. But unlike past games against Nevada and Fresno State, Andersen's team held strong through the fourth quarter and sealed the game with a Bobby Wagner interception. The win was all the more impressive considering Utah State managed to beat a bowl-eligible team on the road — a feat that former coach Brent Guy's 2008 team couldn't claim. Are the Aggies the next sleeping giant in the WAC? It may be too early to tell, but after a strong finish to end 2009, "wait until next year" doesn't seem as hollow as it used to. — adam.nettina@aggiemai•usu.edu Bowden out as FSU coach TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Bobby Bowden orchestrated one of the great runs in college football, building Florida State into a powerhouse that produced two national titles, dozens of All-Americans and some of the most memorable missed field goals ever. Bowden said Tuesday he will end his 44-year coaching career after the Seminoles play in a bowl game. Bowden was done in by a combination of off-field woes, too many defeats and coach-in-waiting Jimbo Fisher ready to take over. "Nothing lasts forever, does it?" a relaxed-looking Bowden asked during video interview conducted by school officials. "But I've had some wonderful years here at Florida State, you know it. Hadn't done as good lately as I wish I could have, but I've had wonderful years, no regrets." The 80-year-old Bowden will retire as the second winningest coach in major-college football behind Penn State's Joe Paterno. The folksy coach has won 388 games at Samford, West Virginia and Florida State, where he spent the last 34 seasons. Bowden was faced with the option of coming back next season with diminished control over the program, giving Fisher more power. "We've got one more game and I look forward to enjoying these next few weeks as the head football coach," Bowden said earlier Tuesday in a statement released by the school. The Seminoles are bowl eligible at 6-6, and were awaiting word on where they will play. They're also awaiting word from the NCAA on whether 14 victories in recent seasons will be vacated because of an academic cheating scandal. Bowden won two national titles at Florida State, in 1993 and 1999. Among his top achievements is a string of 14 straight seasons ending in 2000 when the Seminoles won at least 10 games and finished ranked in the top five of the AP poll. Florida State was 152-19-1, an .864 winning percentage, during that span. He has a 315-97-4 record with the Seminoles, but his teams were 73-42 the past nine seasons. "He set records of achievement on the field that will probably never be equaled," Florida State president T.K. Wetherell said. "Bobby Bowden in many ways became the face of Florida State. It was his sterling personality and character that personified this university." FSU officials announced after the 2007 season that Fisher, the offensive coordinator, would succeed Bowden. The end of the Bowden era has been brewing for years, and the call for change only grew louder this year, when loss after loss, many coming in the final minutes, began piling up. The regular season ended with a sixth straight loss to bitter rival Florida, a 37-10 blowout. A football lifer, Bowden modeled his career after his idol Paul "Bear" Bryant, the legendary Alabama coach who died shortly after he retired in 1982. "After you retire, there's only one big event left," Bowden has said over the years. "And I ain't ready for that." Bowden seemed to be in good humor during the video interview, saying his family doesn't have to worry about his well being. "Now, you know I have to go out and get a job. Can you believe that?" he said. "I've got to go get a job. I ain't had a job in 55 years." Paterno called Bowden a tough competitor who "has meant an awful lot to the universities he coached and to the game of football overall. "He and his wife, Ann, have dedicated their lives with untold hours to better the teams and universities they cared so much about," Paterno said. "They will be missed by the coaching profession and college football." Bowden relished the spotlight and his "ow shucks" approach was well received everywhere he went. It was dur- ing the rare losses when Bowden was at his best, relying on his favorite phrase "Dadgumit" when discussing all those wideright and wide-left field goals against Miami in the late 1980s and early 1990s that knocked so many of his teams out of national title contention. Bowden also got caught up in NCAA investigations. The cheating scandal is the just the latest. The school was hit with five years' probation for a 1993 incident when several of his players were given free shoes and sporting goods from a local store. That led to former Florida coach Steve Spurrier calling Florida State "Free Shoes University." Bowden and winning, though, go hand in hand. He goes into a final bowl game with an overall 388-129-4 record. After his first Florida State team went 5-6 in 1976, the Seminoles never had a losing season. Among the stars who played for Bowden were Heisman Trophy winning quarterbacks Charlie Ward and Chris Weinke, defensive backs Deion Sanders and LeRoy Butler, running back Warrick Dunn, receiver Peter Warrick and nose guard Ron Simmons. "There's been so many great players through our program," Bowden said. "I've had quite a few calls today from them. And I See BOWDEN, page 8 ASOAW 630 West 200 North 753-8875 SQUARE ON E PRINTING ALTIUS one Affordable Health Care Coverage for Individuals Call Corrie L. Bingham Insurance Agency, Inc. 435.713.4500 OR email chucklesins@aol.com S. www.altiushealthplans.com That's Right, Hydraulics Baby. That's How We Roll. ,s • www.cvtdbus.org ExpeiCo m IowMac prices. 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