MIAMI - Florida State and Miami were originally scheduled to play Monday. Instead, they spent the day trying to recover from Hurricane Frances.
It wasn't easy, but it was necessary as the teams prepared for their postponed season opener Friday night at the Orange Bowl.
Frances forced the fourth-ranked Seminoles to practice indoors while they mourned the loss of coach Bobby Bowden's 15-year-old grandson and former son-in-law.
John Allen Madden, a 45-year-old former Florida State lineman who played under Bowden, and his son, Bowden, were killed Sunday when their car was hit a by a utility truck that was helping restore power outages caused by Frances.
``Most of us have been around all of the Bowden family a great deal, and it is a loss shared by all of us,'' Florida State athletic director Dave Hart said in a statement. ``Words can't express the grieving I know the Bowdens are going through.''
The Seminoles closed practice to the media and had no player or coach availability Monday. Bowden and offensive coordinator Jeff Bowden attended the workout.
The fifth-ranked Hurricanes practiced Monday for the first time in four days because of Frances.
``Guys' minds were not on football,'' center Joel Rodriguez said. ``Guys' minds were on their families, their houses, their property and their safety. It's understandable. ... To have three days off where you're not even thinking about football, but about your house being blown away or whatever, it's a lot to come back from and get right into the flow.''
Several players' families and friends were still without power and water Monday.
Miami defensive back Devin Hester, from Riviera Beach, said the roof on his parents' home collapsed, flooding every room, and a tree crushed his mother's car.
``It didn't turn out too good,'' Hester said. ``It's kind of bad knowing that I'm here and my mom, they're in Palm Beach struggling. I'm just trying to keep my focus and concentrate on football right now.''
Miami receiver Ryan Moore, from Orlando, said Hurricane Charley affected his family more than Frances. But having two hurricanes within three weeks left him with some troubling nights.
``I've never seen anything back to back like that,'' Moore said. ``All of us from Florida, we're as used to it as you can get. You've just got to go with the punches.''
Another hurricane could affect the rescheduled game. Hurricane Ivan, a Category 2 storm with 105 mph wind, lost strength Monday but was on a course that could bring it near Florida's Atlantic coast Friday.
``With what's happened with the last two, Frances and Charley, there's certainly a definite concern,'' Hurricanes coach Larry Coker said. ``Maybe we shouldn't be because it's so far away. But it's very powerful, and it's on track.''
Friday
May 23rd, 2025
2:28AM
