{"id":20799,"date":"2019-02-24T07:30:30","date_gmt":"2019-02-24T12:30:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lwosoncfb.ms.lastwordonsports.com\/?p=20799"},"modified":"2019-02-23T22:01:29","modified_gmt":"2019-02-24T03:01:29","slug":"three-cool-facts-every-florida-state-fan-should-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/2019\/02\/24\/three-cool-facts-every-florida-state-fan-should-know\/","title":{"rendered":"Three Cool Facts Florida State Fans Should Know About the Seminoles"},"content":{"rendered":"

All college football programs believe they have what it takes to be cool. And let’s face it, many schools\u00a0are<\/em> cool, but there are some that earn more cool points than others. One such school is Florida State, and the Seminoles have some cool trivia in their football history. Here are three Florida State facts every fan should know.<\/p>\n

FSU has a cool, albeit, brief college football history. Fred Biletnikoff<\/a><\/strong> got married under the goal posts at Doak Campbell Stadium. The Marching Chiefs band invented the tomahawk chop. And there is the sod cemetery at the stadium that boasts a piece of the opponents\u2019 field where the Noles earned big victories.<\/p>\n

While those things certainly are cool, here are three things about Florida State football that every Seminole fan should know:<\/p>\n

The Heisman Coincidences<\/h3>\n

Florida State players have earned three Heisman Trophies since the program\u2019s inception:\u00a0Charlie Ward<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0won in 1993, Chris Weinke<\/a><\/strong> in 2000, and Jameis Winston<\/a><\/strong> in 2013. Hoisting the trophy is not the only thing these former Seminoles have in common, however.<\/p>\n

Sure, each was a quarterback. And yes, each player\u2019s surname begin with a \u201cW\u201d. But there is more. None of the three are actually from<\/em> the state of Florida. Ward is from nearby Thomasville, Ga., while Weinke came to FSU from St. Paul, Minn., and Winston hails from Birmingham, Ala.<\/p>\n

Also, each of them was a two-sport star. Ward never played in the NFL, but he did have an 11-year career in the NBA with the New York Knicks, San Antonio Spurs, and Houston Rockets. Weinke played six years in the Toronto Blue Jays\u2019 organization, making it all the way to the Triple-A level before returning to football. And Winston was an ace closer on the FSU baseball team during his time in Tallahassee.<\/p>\n

Moreover, two of those players are now coaches. Ward coaches basketball at Tallahassee\u2019s Florida High School, while Weinke is the running backs\u2019 coach at the University of Tennessee. You could say that Winston is following in their footsteps as “coach” on the field as the quarterback of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.<\/p>\n

From Tallahassee to Tinseltown<\/h3>\n

Normally, one thinks of athletes from schools like UCLA or Southern California becoming actors, but FSU has held its own on the screen, three time zones from Hollywood.<\/p>\n

Former Seminole center Robert Urich<\/strong> starred in television\u2019s \u201cSWAT\u201d and \u201cSpenser for Hire,\u201d as well as appearing on the silver screen in \u201cTurk 182\u201d and \u201cIce Pirates.\u201d He went into acting after fellow former Seminole Burt Reynolds<\/strong> persuaded him to give it a try.<\/p>\n

Reynolds, known as “Buddy” during his days at Florida State, was a running back until he suffered a career-ending knee injury. He went on to star in the TV series, Dan August, before starring in such feature films as \u201cThe Longest Yard,” \u201cSmokey and the Bandit,\u201d and the ironically titled, \u201cGator.\u201d<\/p>\n

A teammate of Reynolds at Florida State also went on to fame in television. Former FSU quarterback Lee Corso<\/a><\/strong> is one of college football\u2019s most-loved personalities from his role on ESPN\u2019s \u201cGameDay.\u201d<\/p>\n

A Cool Play and a Legendary Celebration<\/h3>\n

In 1988, Florida State traveled to Death Valley to take on Clemson, tying the game 21-21 with just over a minute to play. As the time clock winded down, the Seminoles lined up to punt. But then head coach Bobby Bowden<\/strong> had a trick up his sleeve. The snap went to up man Leroy Butler<\/strong> who put the ball between his legs and faked a handoff to a teammate. Butler raced up the left sideline to the Tigers\u2019 4-yard line to set up the game winning field goal. The play has gone down in college football history as the \u201cPuntrooski.\u201d<\/p>\n