NASHVILLE, Tenn.: Kentucky quarterback Andre Woodson had just handed Bobby Bowden his first December bowl loss, but that didn't stop the cordial Florida State coach from making proper introductions.

"Where are you from, son?" Bowden asked as Andre Woodson prepared to enter the interview room Monday following Kentucky's 35-28 victory in the Music City Bowl.

Bowden may finally have a blemish on his December postseason record, but Andre Woodson is still perfect. In fact, he improved to 2-0 against members of the Bowden family.

The senior quarterback threw four TDs against a depleted Seminoles defense to win MVP honors for the second straight Music City Bowl. The Wildcats hadn't ended consecutive seasons with bowl wins since 1951-52 under Bear Bryant, but they pulled off the feat in Nashville one year after surprising Clemson, coached by Bowden's son, Tommy.

"It's been a long, long journey," said Woodson, who came to probation-saddled Kentucky as a freshman and was among a core group that helped turn the program's fortunes. "We've obviously left our mark here."

As for the elder Bowden, who has led the Seminoles to 26 straight bowls and two national titles, his December bowl record dropped to 7-1-1. Bowden is major college football's winningest coach with 373 victories — one ahead of Penn State's Joe Paterno.

Florida State was playing three dozen players short due to injuries and suspensions stemming from an academic cheating scandal, and Bowden acknowledged the lack of depth had an impact.

"I was worried about getting worn out," Bowden said. "We've always played a lot of people, and we simply couldn't play a lot of people in this ballgame."

Andre Woodson capitalized on the missing players with 358 yards passing and finished the season with 40 touchdown throws, breaking Tim Couch's school-record 37 set in 1998. It was the 19th consecutive game with at least 200 yards passing and a scoring touchdown for Andre Woodson, a senior who figures to be among the first quarterbacks taken in the NFL draft.

"He's got an NFL body, an NFL arm and he clearly has an NFL mind," Kentucky coach Rich Brooks said.

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