Bowen Takes on Responsibility

AMES, Iowa -- Iowa State linebacker Alvin Bowen is shouldering more responsibility this fall, on and off the football field. Bowen made a rapid rise to national status on the gridiron last fall, leading the nation in tackles. The consensus first-team all-Big 12 honoree starts the 2007 season with a new head coach and a spot on the Nagurski Award national watch list. Bowen will face new tests this fall.

Last weekend, Bowen welcomed his mother Angelia Robinson and 12-year-old brother Jamar Summers, to Ames. When his mother, a home health nurse, headed back to East Orange, N.J., Jamar stayed in Ames to attend middle school and live with Bowen.

“It will be a better atmosphere for Jamar in Ames,” Bowen said. “My mom did a great job raising all of us, but she is getting older and it will be good for him to have a male role model. I feel I can handle it because I only need two classes to graduate.”

Growing up, it was Alvin, who followed his older brothers and led to the nickname almost universally used by his coaches and teammates.

“I imitated my older brother Jermie all the time,” Bowen said. “If he had a nickname, I wanted that nickname. At one point his nickname was Ace. Eventually, my brother said he didn't like that nickname anymore. I liked it and have kept it since middle school.”

Bowen starting playing football in seventh grade. He played on both sides of the ball at Montclair (N.J.) High School, where he forged a reputation as a hard-nosed ball carrier and tackler. He led Montclair to a New Jersey high school championship in 2002.

Many players like Bowen, talented non-qualifiers academically out of high school or preps who are not necessarily top-shelf recruits out of high school need an advocate to open the road to college football. “Ace” had one in his high school coach, Ed Liba. Liba worked to contact junior colleges on Bowen's behalf. Those inquiries led to Bowen making a decision to attend Garden City (Kan.) Community College.

From East Orange and Montclair, N.J., it is nearly 1,600 miles to Garden City, a town of 28,000 in the southwest of the Sunflower State. There was some culture shock.

“The first week I was okay but then I got really homesick,” Bowen said.

Bowen did not play his first year at Garden City (2003), working to put his academics in order. The longing for home was short-term.

“When I got there I was with the sixth-team linebacker group, starting at the bottom,” Bowen said. “My roommate helped me, telling me to hang in there and that I would feel better with time. I did and worked my way up the depth chart.”

Bowen was a force at Garden City in 2004, making 85 solo tackles, eight sacks, 21 hurries and two fumble recoveries. He first heard of Iowa State during that season and made a visit to Ames.

“My hosts on my visit to Iowa State gave me that feeling you got leaving high school, that these guys will be your teammates forever,” Bowen said. “They told me that ?once you put on our jersey, you are one of us.' Teams that are tight are better teams and I really got that feeling at Iowa State on my visit.”

In his first Iowa State season, Bowen was a major contributor on a defense that allowed just 102.7 yards rushing and 10 rushing touchdowns, both school record lows. He made 33 tackles in a ready reserve role. Bowen made six tackles against Oklahoma State and had five in the Cyclones' 23-3 rout of intrastate rival Iowa. Iowa State went 7-5 and played in the EVI.net Houston Bowl, a 27-24 loss to TCU in which he made three tackles. His mother came to Houston for the game. It is an experience he wants to live again.

“I had a great time in Houston,” Bowen said. “My mother came down and loved it. I want to go back to a bowl game so bad.”

There would be no bowl game in 2006. Iowa State went 4-8 in a season that despite Bowen leading the nation in tackles, was more bitter than sweet.

“It was hard on many different fronts,” Bowen said. “I was getting attention but I wanted the focus to be on the team. You are nothing without your team.”

Bowen was a difference-maker on the field. Utilizing exceptional lateral speed, Bowen made 155 tackles in 12 games. His final single-game tallies were amazing. In his first game as a starter, Bowen made 20 tackles against Toledo. He had 18 stops against Kansas and 17 against Nebraska. Ace had 15 tackles and an interception at Iowa.

Former Iowa State head coach Dan McCarney resigned late in the 2006 campaign. Bowen was undecided about staying at Iowa State under new head coach Gene Chizik.

“I was hurting when I met with coach Chizik the first time, which was before Christmas break,” Bowen said.

Over break, he considered his options but warmed to the new coaching staff, conversing with strength and conditioning coach Ken Sheppard and defensive coordinator Wayne Bolt.

“I realized that my best option was to come back and I had a great meeting with coach Chizik when I got back to Ames,” Bowen said.

Now, under the watchful eyes of Chizik's staff, Bowen is getting ready for a season in which he says, both he and his teammates could share in gridiron success.

“It will take all of us playing together,” Bowen said. “Coach Chizik is about taking care of business and if we follow his lead I really think we could have a good year.”

Whatever happens on the field at ISU or in professional football a year down the line, Bowen knows there is more to life than football.

Bowen is taking English 302, business communication, this summer. The class teaches effective written communication in business. He enjoys it immensely.

“Earlier today I had a suit on and we were practicing presentations and talking about making a good impression on people in business.”

It has been a winding road to Ames for Alvin Bowen. There is no question that his responsibilities have multiplied on and off the field. His voice affirms his excitement for meeting those challenges head on and making the most of his opportunities.

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Alvin Bowen

Alvin Bowen

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