Sugar Skulls standout to ailing Bobby Bowden: 'Keep fighting'

Jajuan Harley only wanted to play for one coach coming out of high school.

As a standout at Tallahassee’s Rickards High School, Harley — the Tucson Sugar Skulls’ safety-linebacker hybrid — garnered attention from Clemson, Miami, Florida, South Carolina and South Florida.

But one school — and coach — stood out.

“You cannot say Florida State without mentioning Bobby Bowden at all; you just can’t,” said Harley, whose Sugar Skulls (2-7) will face the Bismarck Bucks on Saturday in Tucson. “They have a statue of him in front of the stadium.”

The 91-year-old Bowden, Florida State’s head coach from 1976-2009, has been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. His family has called it a terminal medical condition.

In 34 years as head coach of the Seminoles, Bowden won two national championships and was the ACC champion every year between 1992-2000. Bowden is the second-winningest head coach in college football history with 377 victories. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2006.

Harley, who played at FSU from 2009-10, said he is “shocked” and in disbelief over Bowden’s diagnosis.

“I just thought something planted a rumor or whatever people do, but after I looked at the information and realized it was true, my prayers go out to the Bowden family,” he said.

Sugar Skulls coach Dixie Wooten grew up in Houston and admired Bowden’s success as a youngster in east Texas. He, too, dreamed of playing for one of the most dominant football programs at the time.

“Bowden was the coach everyone wanted to play for,” Wooten said. “Everyone wanted to put that tomahawk on their helmet and go out there and play for him, because of the championships and the legacy of winning. Everybody that’s from Houston, whenever you got a letter from Florida State, you put that on your wall. I hate to hear that about Bobby, because he’s one of the best coaches in college history.”

Harley’s relationship with Bowden goes back to 2008, when the Florida State coach would attend Rickards’ football practice to scout Harley and a few other teammates. Afterwards, he would eat lunch on campus and spend time with recruits to fully understand the young men he was recruiting.

“He’s just a kind, genuine-hearted guy,” Harley said. “It’s not for show or the cameras; it’s really who he is.”

Bowden went all-in on Harley’s recruitment, inviting the recruit and his family to his house for a catered dinner and homemade cookies. Bowden’s wife, Ann, was the Seminoles’ secret weapon in recruiting.

“They were wonderful cookies! We had oatmeal, oatmeal raisin, peanut butter, you name it. I mean, it was your choice and there were so many cookies left, she let us take some home,” Harley said. “It was just a buffet of desserts. When I tell you those cookies are good, I still taste them to this day.”

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Harley committed to Florida State’s 2009 recruiting class. During his time at FSU, Harley ran into multiple football greats.

Deion Sanders would attend practice one day. The next, it would be Marvin Jones or Derrick Brooks or Terrell Buckley — an endless list of players united by their adoration for Bowden.

“It gave me goosebumps, because I was walking in the hallway with these legends,” Harley said.

Said Wooten: “Jajuan talks about that experience almost every day” with his Tucson teammates.

Harley transferred after Bowden retired, finishing his career at Tennessee State.

To this day, Harley remains indebted to Bowden for taking a chance on him.

“I have a lot of teammates who talk to each other and just reflect back on the opportunities that he gave to us,” Harley said. “A scholarship is everything. One thing about Bobby Bowden: Coaches now will give guys a one-year scholarship. He believed in, ‘I’m going to give you four years, because I want you to graduate,’ and that is rare and I don’t think too many coaches do that to this day.”

Harley’s message to Bowden now?

“He used to always tell us before practice: ‘Men, you gotta keep fighting. No matter what, you have to keep fighting,’” Harley said.

“So, Coach Bobby Bowden, I’ll tell him, ‘You have to keep fighting, my man. Keep fighting.’”

Extra points

Bismarck has lost starting quarterback Kelly Bryant, who signed with the CFL’s Toronto Argonauts earlier this week. Bryant was a starter for the Clemson Tigers, before being benched for Trevor Lawrence and transferring to Missouri.

Sugar Skulls running back Mike Jones has scored nine touchdowns in the last two weeks.

Three expansion franchises are near the top of the IFL standings: the Frisco Fighters are in second place, the Spokane Shock are in third and the Massachusetts Pirates are fourth. The Arizona Rattlers are first with a 7-2 record, but are coming off a 68-44 loss to the Pirates.