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Faithful heritage passed from Bobby Bowden to son Tuesday, Oct 9, 2007 By Eva Wolever |
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More often then not, however, the gloves were set aside as the humor of the situation defused childish arguments. “We tried to raise our kids the same way we were raised,” said Bowden, a father of four boys and two girls. His parenting philosophy was centered on God and church, looking at his father for a role model, Bowden said. “I keep in mind that there’s something deeper than this,” Bowden said of coaching. “I worry about a coach that makes football his god.” Bowden passed down the legacy of faithfulness to his son, Tommy, the head football coach at Clemson University. Tommy said he has learned much from Bowden as a husband, a father and a coach. “I tried to raise my son like he raised me,” Tommy told Florida Baptist Witness. “He tried not to let his professional life affect his family life.” The elder Bowden taught his children the importance of godly principles, Tommy said. Going to church was not optional for the Bowden children, and Tommy said he is also continuing that tradition with his own two children. “As long as I’m paying their bills and stuff, they’re going,” Tommy said of his children’s church attendance. I go to a local church here and whether I win or lose I’m showing up. Consistent church attendance I learned from him and whether you win or lose — go — and it makes a statement,” Tommy said he learned from his father. Drawing from Hebrews 13:8, which says God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow, Tommy said it doesn’t matter that his father was raised in a different generation and a different time. Biblical standards are always applicable, Tommy continued. “It wasn’t a democracy; it was a dictatorship,” Tommy said of the Bowden household. “We were raised understanding what godly standards were and there was a difference between what society accepts and what godly standards are.” Bowdens don’t compromise either, Tommy said. “That’d be the one thing that I have learned, to not to compromise and don’t dilute and water down and deviate from the Word of God,” Tommy added. Tommy said his father exhibits “a lifestyle of somebody that talks the talk and walks the walk.” Tommy tries to model his own life after his father’s by being careful what he jokes about, what he repeats, and by making sure his attitude and demeanor both on and off the field is consistently Christian. “If I’m going to profess Christianity, which I do, I think it’s important that my lifestyle reflects it,” Tommy said. “I coach a very violent game. I coach a game that involves a lot of emotion, a lot of energy, a lot of enthusiasm and now-a-days people associate that with cursing and I don’t do that.” The elder Bowden said it is important to keep one’s priorities straight. “I think when you have a belief in God and you believe in salvation and you’ve done the things that you should do or you’ve accepted the things you should accept; well then that overrules anything that can happen down here,” Bowden said. --30--
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