UL-Monroe coach Terry Bowden leaves team to be with ailing father, Bobby Bowden

Terry Bowden, UL-Monroe's coach, has resigned to be with Bobby Bowden, his father who is suffering from end-stage pancreatic carcinoma.Team confirmed that Terry Bowden was traveling to Tallahassee (Florida) on Thursday. Rich Rodriguez, former head coach at West Virginia and Arizona, will be the offensive coordinator. The team started training camp on Friday. Rodriguez will be acting as interim head coach in the absence of Bowden.Last month, Bobby Bowden, 91, announced that he was suffering from a terminal illness. Terry Bowden confirmed that it was pancreatic cancer. Bobby Bowden was the leader of Florida State to the national titles in 1993, 1999, and was second in Division I history in wins with 357.Terry Bowden will be entering his first season as ULM's head coach. Formerly, he was an FBS head coach in Akron and Auburn.Bowden said that there is a spiritual part of him that thanks God for the many good times he's given me with my father. "We knew for a few weeks that it was terminal. We are grateful that it hasn’t been difficult or painful for him as it draws closer. Rich and I are so close that I don't mind him taking it over because he has done it for almost the same amount of time as me. He can step in and I feel comfortable in my shoes, so it's easy for me to trust that the program will go smoothly."