While many might now say that they viewed Bowden as one who would establish greatness at FSU, the early indications were quite different. The ‘Noles lost their first five games in 1976 and noting a poor attitude on the part of some of the older players who had indeed lost a lot under previous coaching regimes, Bowden flooded the field with freshmen. By the latter part of the season, the youngsters had the hang of Bowden’s system and four ninety-yard-plus plays brought wins in the season’s final three games, including a 21-20 heart-thumper in five inches of snow against North Texas State, for a 5-6 finish. TB Larry Key completed the season with another year of eligibility and had already established the FSU career rushing mark. The defense needed work but had potential in DE Willie Jones and 190-pound LB Aaron Carter. Bowden introduced a new helmet design that was destined for the same type of legacy he built as a coach. The 1975 Indian Head helmet designs were not mirror-imaged and thus according to assistant coach Jim Gladden, the helmets gave a non-uniform appearance between the left and right sides of the headgear. Bowden also felt that the asymmetry of the helmets made it appear as if his players’ heads were wobbling side-to-side so he made an immediate change. The gold helmet was adorned with a garnet and white spear logo, one that became identified with the outstanding Seminole teams, and it was topped off with a red mask. In Bowden’s second season, the ’77 squad brought FSU as their head coach said, “to where they should be” and for most of the following thirty years, they would remain there and that would be toward the top of the national rankings. The 10-2 season was paced by a two-headed QB system that matched Wally Woodham, who had set a national high school passing record at Tallahassee’s Leon High School, with Jimmy Jordan, who had followed Woodham the following year and then broke that same record at the same high school. Both products of Coach Gene Cox’s system, and both sophs, Bowden would go with the one he believed had the hot hand and throughout the entire season, one would bail the other out when needed with neither truly considered the starter over the other. They threw to WR’s Kurt Unglaub and Mike Shumann, yet another former Leon H.S. player who later spent six seasons in the NFL with three teams. TB Larry Key whose every carry would be greeted by joyful fans jingling their keys throughout the stands, became the first Seminole to top 1000 rushing yards in a season. DE Jones again was outstanding and played three seasons with the Raiders but it was stocky, muscular newcomer Ron Simmons at MG that got the headlines. There were games in which the 6’, 230 pound muscle man and former National High School Lineman Of The Year seemed unstoppable. After a huge mid-season 24-3 defeat of Auburn, the squad knew what they could do and they went on to crush Texas Tech in the Tangerine Bowl 40-17. The ten victories set a school record, the team finished at number fourteen, and the Bowden-Florida State legacy was on its way. Simmons would complete his Seminole career as an All American and have his jersey number fifty retired. He played briefly with the Browns, the USFL Tampa Bay Bandits and Memphis Showboats, and with Ottowa in the CFL. He became a very successful and popular pro wrestler and continues to be seen on television in WWE-sponsored events.