There has never been a good team in college football that didn’t earn its wins through the work it put in during practice. Practice is where players and coaches can prepare and grind so that they are ready for the game on Saturdays.
Since the BCS era was implemented in 1998, there have only been 13 undefeated national champions. One of those champions was the 1999 Florida State Seminoles, and former wide receiver Anquan Boldin recently explained how Florida State’s practice is why they were able to be perfect every Saturday.
Anquan Boldin Reflects on the Brutal Culture That Fueled FSU’s Undefeated Season
In a recent interview on “The OG’s Show,” the former Florida State wide receiver broke down how the culture in Tallahassee shaped the Seminoles’ undefeated season in 1999.
Boldin explained that the Florida State offense and defense simply did not like each other, and how every practice in 1999 was an all-out war.
Anquan Boldin on how FSU went undefeated 🍢 pic.twitter.com/tZHfvbVHNB
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“When I was at Florida State, especially my freshman year, offense and defense, they didn’t get along,” Boldin said. “Monday through Friday, it was all-out war. The only time we got along was on Saturday.”
Boldin also explained that the Seminoles’ coaching staff, led by head coach Bobby Bowden, implemented punishments if one unit outperformed the other.
“If any did in practice, if offense had a great day, defense had to run,” Boldin said. “They had to get it, like almost died there. And if defense won, offense already knew what was coming.”
While the practices were intense, Boldin credited Bowden’s culture at Florida State that year for the Seminoles’ undefeated run and national championship win.
“That’s why, especially my freshman year, we ended up going undefeated,” Boldin said. “No. 1 the whole year.”
For a player to have his hardest days at practice, make it so that game days feel like a breeze, and that’s what creates championship teams, like the 1999 Seminoles.
Boldin wasn’t heavily involved in Florida State’s offense that championship season, only catching 12 passes. However, the culture led him to have a great career, capping off his final season with over 1,000 yards.
After his years at Florida State, Boldin was selected by the Arizona Cardinals in the second round of the 2003 NFL Draft and had a 14-year NFL career.
It’s hard to say Boldin wouldn’t be successful without that first year at Florida State, but it’s also hard to imagine he would’ve been as dedicated and dominant if it weren’t for the brutal practice culture that the 1999 Seminoles had.
