Clark: Even in tough times, FSU fans have so many reasons to be thankful
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After everything that's transpired over the past year, part of me thought it was a bit foolish to write a column like this.
I'm no stranger to sentimentality, as you guys know, and I'm always looking for some fond memories to share with you. But if there was ever a year to sit out a "What-I'm-thankful-for" column, I thought this would be the one.
We're in the middle of the world's worst pandemic in 100 years. We just experienced the most contentious election of my lifetime. And, of much lesser importance, the football team we all care about (and in my case, write and talk about) is 2-6 on the season and 20-26 in its last 46 games. When you remember that three of those 20 wins were against FCS schools, well, that makes that record all the more painful.
But you know what? I don't care. I know this team is bad. I know the 'Noles might not be one of the 10 best programs in the ACC right now. I know Dabo is going to stop whining at some point and come down here in a few weeks and try to put up 100 points. And I know that's not entirely out of the realm of possibility.
Here's the good news, though! (This is going to be a positive column, folks, I promise.)
If you're reading this, you have been very fortunate to be a Florida State fan. You've had a wonderful football life already. Be thankful. Be grateful.
If you're even just in your teens, you've gotten to experience one national championship.
If you're in your 40s like me, you've gotten to experience three. And if you're in your 50s or 60s or more, you've had the privilege to watch a program rise up from oblivion to become the most successful football program in the United States.
That happened in your lifetime. What a gift. Truly.
My dad went to Florida State in the 1960s and watched the bleak days of FSU football in the early 1970s. Even as optimistic as he might have been, there was no way he could have ever known what this little program -- the one that was known for Burt Reynolds and Fred Biletnikoff and not much else -- could one day go from a little upstart just trying to gain a foothold to an all-time juggernaut kicking the teeth out of just about everyone on the schedule. Every year.
During these challenging times, it's important to remember how lucky you are that you wear garnet and gold.
All the big-time football schools have endured struggles like these. But none of those other big-time football schools had a rise like Florida State.
They don't get that. You do.
Bobby Bowden was hired in 1976. From 1977 to 2018, no program in the United States won more football games than little old Florida State. None.
Not Nebraska. Not Oklahoma. Or Ohio State. Or Alabama. For over 40 years (!), the Seminoles were the winningest team in the country -- after getting the latest start (by decades!) of any of the perennial powers in the sport.
That's something to be thankful for. Don't lose sight of that.
Yes, this has been an awful stretch. And it feels like a tailspin that is impossible to get out of. But those older readers I mentioned earlier, they've been here before. They lived through 0-11 and 1-10. Then they got 14 years of Top 5 finishes.
On the whole, when you take a step back, being a Florida State football fan has made you one of the luckiest fans in the country.
Whether you were born into it like I was, whether you enrolled into it, or whether you fell in love with it because of guys like Deion or Jameis or Warrick (either one) or Derrick or Lamarcus or Ponder or Amp or this all-time great or that all-time great, it doesn't matter. You've gotten to cheer for one of the best programs in any sport in the entire nation.
Be proud of what this program has been, and what it could be again.
No other fans got to experience a dynasty like you did. No other fans got to cheer for Charlie Ward and Chris Weinke. No other fans got the Puntrooskie and 29 draft picks from 2014 to 2016 and 29 straight wins and Winston-to-Benjamin and Ward-to-Dunn and all the rest.
Imagine what it's been like to be a South Carolina fan. Or, for that matter, what it was like to be a Clemson fan for the two-and-a-half decades preceding Dabo.
Imagine being a Georgia fan. Yeah, that program is better than yours right now. But that program also hasn't won a national championship since Jimmy Carter was president. You've won three times that many despite UGA having more than a half-century head start.
Tough times pass. Bad teams do, too. This is an all-time awful season. For a variety of reasons. But it will get better. Trust that.
I don't know if Mike Norvell will turn this program back into a championship contender or not, but I do know that Florida State won't be down forever. And when it starts its ascent, it can rise up really, really fast. We've seen it happen more than once.
I also know that no matter what happens, there isn't another fan base anywhere in this country that has more right to be thankful for the past four decades than this one.
I hope you can take pride in that, even during down years. I hope you appreciate just how blessed you've been to watch those aforementioned names -- and all those incredible teams -- represent your school.
Be thankful you got to see all or part of it. Be thankful you now have nowhere to go but up.
And in this most trying of years, be thankful for family and friends, and that you're all safe and (we hope!) healthy.
And also know from the bottom of our hearts, we here at Warchant are very thankful for you. Sincerely.
Now go crush some turkey and forget about Dabo!
Contact senior writer Corey Clark at corey@warchant.com and follow @Corey_Clark on Twitter.
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Talk about this story with other Florida State football fans in the Tribal Council