If there was one thing Bobby Bowden could do, it was recruit.
Sure, Bowden was a masterful coach, guiding Florida State to two national championships and 12 ACC titles. But the backbone of the Seminoles dynasty he created was recruiting.
From Ron Simmons in 1977 to Greg Reid in 2009, Bowden succeeded at landing top recruits for over 30 years. He landed elite players from all parts of Florida, from Anquan Boldin (Pahokee) to Nigel Bradham (Panhandle). Bowden also possessed the ability to nab players across the country throughout his tenure, including Warrick Dunn (Baton Rouge, La.), Callahan Bright (Armore, Pa.) and Lorenzo Booker (Ventura, Calif.). 
Anquan Boldin in 2002.
Courtesy of Getty Images
Bowden’s reign peaked in the 1990s, when Florida State won its two titles. During that time, Florida State was as dangerous as any team on the recruiting trail.
"Throughout the '90s, Bowden was unbeatable," said CBS College recruiting analyst Tom Lemming.
Though their roads took very divergent paths after committing to the Seminoles, here’s a look at the top 10 recruits Bowden landed during his tenure at Florida State.
10. Terrell Buckley, DB, Pascagoula (Miss.), 1988.
Buckley had an unparalleled career at Pascagoula, earning first-team all-state honors as both a junior and a senior. He hauled in an astounding 30 interceptions, returning seven for scores.
After Bowden brought him to Tallahassee, he continued to post impressive numbers, amassing 21 career interceptions, the most in Florida State history.
9. Fred Rouse, WR, Lincoln (Tallahassee, Fla.), 2005.
Lincoln was very kind to Bowden through the years, keeping numerous top prospects in Tallahassee to play at Florida State. In 2003, the Seminoles landed Antonio Cromartie, who immediately made an impact at the college level. An even bigger recruit, Rouse drew Randy Moss comparisons because of his gifts of prodigious size (6-foot-4, 195 pounds) and outstanding speed. He was part of a national championship-winning track team in the 4x100. In short, he was a can’t-miss, and everyone projected stardom for him.
Rouse never panned out for Bowden, however, only playing one season and eventually getting kicked off the team. He is currently on the football roster at Concordia College.
8. Lorenzo Booker, RB, St. Bonaventure (Ventura, Calif.), 2002.
Most of the more high-profile recruits that Bowden nabbed, Booker chose Florida State during a nationally televised press conference in which most recruiting fans expected him to announce in favor of Notre Dame or USC. Booker enjoyed back-to-back monstrous seasons for St. Bonaventure, rushing for 49 and 50 TDs his junior and senior years, respectively.
He never lived up to his hype while in Tallahassee, as his average yards per carry dropped in each of his four seasons.
7. Xavier Lee, QB, Seabreeze (Daytona Beach, Fla.), 2004.
The owner of the Florida state records for most passing touchdowns, yards and completions at the time of his graduation, Lee was a two-time area player of the year at Seabreeze. His speed and athleticism, coupled with his 6-4 frame and cannon arm, led to a recruiting battle between Florida State, Auburn and Texas.
Lee ultimately chose Florida State, where many expected him to see early playing time for the Seminoles. However, Lee’s production did not match his hype. He was never able to unseat fellow signal-caller Drew Weatherford, and ended up leaving Florida State early to declare for the NFL Draft.
6. Derrick Brooks, DB, Washington (Pensacola, Fla.), 1990.
Long before he was a star linebacker at Florida State and later in the NFL with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Derrick Brooks was a punishing safety at Washington, where he was named USA Today National Defensive Player of the Year.
During his tenure at Florida State, Brooks added 20 pounds of muscle and managed to get faster. His newly-strengthened frame allowed him to dominate at linebacker, where had a knack for scoring defensive touchdowns when he wasn't too busy tallying 274 career tackles.
Brooks recorded over 1,300 tackles during this 14 seasons with the Buccaneers.
5. Ernie Sims, LB, North Florida Christian (Tallahassee, Fla.), 2003.
Sims was a small linebacker at a small school, but displayed enormous talent. The 6-1, 225-pound linebacker was instrumental in the North Florida Christian dynasty that won four consecutive 1A state titles from 1998-2001. In his junior and senior years combined, Sims made more than 300 tackles.
Strong ties to Florida State pulled Sims to Tallahassee. Sims’ father played for the Seminoles in the early 1980s while his mother ran track there. Sims made an instant impact in college, seeing action in all 13 games his freshman year. He is currently a member of the Detroit Lions.
4. Charlie Ward, QB, Central of Thomasville (Thomasville, Ga.), 1988.
Georgia has been a top producer of college prospects for decades. In 1987 the Peach State was particularly kind to Bowden and the Seminoles as two-sport star Charlie Ward committed to Florida State.
Ward led Central of Thomasville (now Thomas County Central) to back-to-back region titles and was the AAA offensive player of the year his senior season. He led Central to a win in what was dubbed "The Game of the Century," a 1-AAA final against crosstown rival Thomasville in which Ward threw for five TDs to cement his legend.
His reputation only continued to grow once he began to play for Florida State. He eventually won both a Heisman Trophy and a national championship, before launching a career in the NBA that spanned over a decade.
3. Joe Mauer, QB, Cretin-Derham Hall (St. Paul, Minnesota), 2001.
While Ward was a two-sport star in high school, Cretin-Derham Hall’s Joe Mauer was a two-sport icon by the time he graduated in 2001.
As a quarterback, Mauer was the Gatorade Player of the Year, leading the Raiders to a state title while throwing for 41 TDs and 3,022 yards. Only months later, he became the first overall pick in the 2001 MLB Draft.
Before deciding on a career with the Minnesota Twins, Mauer signed a letter of intent to play quarterback for Florida State. Previously, Bowden inked another Cretin-Derham Hall star, Chris Weinke, who also chose to pursue a path in baseball. Weinke never amounted to much on the diamond, but enjoyed a Heisman-winning career.
Mauer batted .308 in his first season win the Twins and hasn’t looked back. He recently captured the 2009 American League MVP.
2. Deion Sanders, DB, North Fort Myers (Fort Myers, Fla.), 1985. 
Deion Sanders at FSU in 1987.
Courtesy of Getty Images
A member of Florida’s All-Century team, Sanders starred at football, baseball and basketball in high school. To this day, he’s still a topic of conversation around Fort Myers. Bowden landing Sanders meant Florida State would have a shutdown cornerback who could also make plays on special teams.
What most remember Sanders for was his uncanny speed, which allowed him to also run track for the Seminoles. In his career at Florida State, he intercepted 14 passes and was twice selected as an All-American.
He’s now widely regarded as the greatest cornerback in the history of the NFL, and will almost certainly get inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2011.
1. Randy Moss, WR, DuPont (Belle, W.Va.), 1995.
The standard by which all subsequent wide receiver prospects have been judged, Moss was a man amongst boys. He emerged as a star in basketball and track at DuPont in addition to leading the football team to two state titles.
Moss originally signed a letter of intent to play for Notre Dame, but was cut loose after an incident during his senior year of high school. That’s when Bowden swooped in, bringing arguably the greatest recruit of all time to Tallahassee.
Unfortunately for Noles fans, Moss never played a down at Florida State, transferring to Marshall after one season on campus. With the help of Thundering Herd quarterback Chad Pennington, Moss put up gaudy numbers at Marshall before the Vikings drafted him 21st in the 1998 NFL Draft. He has since compiled 143 receiving touchdowns in an illustrious NFL career.
Tom Lemming contributed to this story.
