On January 1, 2010, Bobby Bowden ended his 57 year coaching career by winning his last bowl game. His Florida State Seminoles defeated the number 16 seeded West Virginia Mountaineers by a score of 33 to 21 in the Konica Minolta Gator Bowl.http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=300010052

The Seminoles finished their 2009 season with a record of 6-6, marking the third time in the last four years that the team has lost six games in a season. According to ESPN, Bowden was given the option to return to the football program next season as a team ambassador or to retire from coaching. He decided on the latter and made the announcement in December.http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=4701625

The Gator Bowl is held annually on January 1 and pits a team in the Atlantic Coast Conference versus a team in the Big 12 Conference, the Big East Conference, or against the University of Notre Dame.http://www.gatorbowl.com/quick_facts.html Bobby Bowden has personally coached Florida State in four Gator Bowl appearances and his team has won every appearance by an average of 13 points.http://www.gatorbowl.com/media_history_yby.html

Since the first game on January 1, 1946, the Gator Bowl has always been held in Jacksonville, Florida.http://www.gatorbowl.com/quick_facts.html The event has consistently grown in popularity, drawing more than 82,000 attendees at the height of its success in 1989.http://www.gatorbowl.com/media_history_ar.html

Bobby Bowden retires as the second-winningest coach in college football history. His win at the Gator Bowl marks his 33rd consecutive winning season as the head coach of the Seminoles.http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=300010052 He took over the Florida State University football program in 1976 and built the program into a legitimate college dynasty, sending more than 250 of its players to the NFL.http://www.seminoles.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/bowden_bobby01.html

Before the game, Chief Osceola, Florida State's mascot, presented Bowden with the traditional flaming spear, which Bowden then planted into the turf.http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/bowls09/news/story?id=4788181 Next season, Bobby Bowden will be succeeded as head coach by current Florida State defensive coordinator, Jimbo Fisher.http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=300010052