Bowden Era (1993-1998)

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  • In 1992, Bowden was hired to succeed Pat Dye as the head football coach at Auburn University
  • During his first year at Auburn, Bowden led the Tigers to a perfect 11–0 season, becoming the first coach to go undefeated in his debut season at a Division I school. In 1994, Auburn finished 9–1–1, establishing the longest winning streak in school history at 20 games.
  • In 1997, Auburn reached the SEC Championship Game, where they held as much as a 20–7 lead, but lost, giving up a fourth quarter 73-yard touchdown pass by Peyton Manning of the Tennessee Volunteers.
  • In 1998, Bowden’s fate at Auburn changed as he faced criticism for recruiting woes, off-the-field issues that resulted in player discipline, and in his relationships with Auburn administrators, including board of trustees member Bobby Lowder. These issues, combined with a string of player injuries, led to a disastrous start of the 1998 season.
  • After starting 1998 with a 1–5 record, Bowden resigned as head coach the night before Auburn played against Louisiana Tech. In conversations with athletic director David Housel, Bowden was given no assurances he would have a chance to remedy the situation for the next season, and that he believed his termination was imminent.  The team was coached for the remainder of the season by Bill Oliver.
1998 | Record: 3-8*
Opponent W/L Score
Virginia L, 0-19
@ Mississippi W, 17-0
Louisiana St. L, 19-31
Tennessee L, 9-17
@ Mississippi St. L, 21-38
@ Florida L, 3-24
Louisiana Tech W, 32-17
Arkansas L, 21-24
Central Florida W, 10-6
Georgia L, 17-28
@ Alabama L, 17-31
*Terry Bowden coached games 1-6, Bill “Brother” Oliver coached games 7-11
1997 | SEC – West Division Champions | Record: 10-3
Opponent W/L Score
@ Virginia W, 28-17
Mississippi W, 19-9
@ Louisiana St. W, 31-28
Central Florida W, 41-14
@ South Carolina W, 23-6
Louisiana Tech W, 49-13
Florida L, 10-24
@ Arkansas W, 26-21
Mississippi St. L, 0-20
@ Georgia W, 45-34
Alabama W, 18-17
SEC Championship Game
Tennessee L, 29-30
Peach Bowl
Clemson W, 21-17
1996 | Record: 8-4
Opponent W/L Score
Alabama-Birmingham W, 29-0
Fresno St. (CA) W, 62-0
@ Mississippi W, 45-28
Louisiana St. L, 15-19
South Carolina W, 28-24
@ Mississippi St. W, 49-15
@ Florida L, 10-51
Arkansas W, 28-7
Louisiana-Monroe W, 28-24
Georgia L, 49-56
@ Alabama L, 23-24
Independence Bowl
Army W, 32-29
1995 | Record: 8-4
Opponent W/L Score
Mississippi W, 46-13
Tennessee-Chattanooga W, 76-10
@ Louisiana St. L, 6-12
@ Kentucky W, 42-21
Mississippi St. W, 48-20
Florida L, 38-49
Western Michigan W, 34-13
@ Arkansas L, 28-30
Louisiana-Monroe W, 38-14
@ Georgia W, 37-31
Alabama W, 31-27
Outback Bowl
Penn State L, 14-43
1994 | Record: 9-1-1
Opponent W/L Score
@ Mississippi W, 22-17
Louisiana-Monroe W, 44-12
Louisiana St. W, 30-26
East Tennessee St. W, 38-0
Kentucky W, 41-14
@ Mississippi St. W, 42-18
@ Florida W, 36-33
Arkansas W, 31-14
East Carolina (NC) W, 38-21
Georgia T, 23-23
@ Alabama L, 14-21
1993 | Record: 11-0
Opponent W/L Score
Mississippi W, 16-12
Samford (AL) W, 35-7
@ Louisiana St. W, 34-10
Southern Mississippi W, 35-24
@ Vanderbilt (TN) W, 14-10
Mississippi St. W, 31-17
Florida W, 38-35
@ Arkansas W, 31-21
New Mexico St. W,55-14
@ Georgia W, 42-28
Alabama W, 22-14