CHARLIE WARD AND FLORIDA STATE
You can’t discuss Florida State Athletics without Charlie Ward’s name being mentioned. In the early 1990s, Ward was a staple in Tallahassee by being a dynamic athlete on the football field and basketball court. On Sunday, the Florida State Men’s Basketball team decided to honor Ward by retiring his jersey and hanging it in the rafters of the Donald L. Tucker Civic Center.
The retirement ceremony will take place in Sunday’s exhibition matchups between Florida State and Florida A&M University, which is coached by Ward in his first season. A few days before the game, both Ward and Seminoles head coach Luke Loucks addressed the media, discussing the game and Ward’s jersey retirement.
“I grew up a massive Charlie Ward fan,” Loucks stated to the media. “He’s one of the all-time great athletes in collegiate history,”. Sunday was a day of celebration in Tallahassee. During his college tenure, Ward gave blood, sweat, and tears to the Florida State Athletic Program. Over 30 years later, he is finally getting his just due for the impact he had during his four seasons.
Football was where Charlie Ward shone the brightest. He became a Heisman winner and led the Seminoles to a National Championship in 1993. While Ward had major success as a football star, basketball was always at the forefront. He was a high school star at Thomas County Central and chose to play at Florida State due to the development of the program.