One of the best Penn State defensive players of the past couple of decades is making a return to the Big Ten, but it will be with one of Penn State’s Big Ten East rivals. Bowman has been hired by Maryland to be a defensive analyst for head coach Mike Locksley.
This is the first role on a football staff for Bowman since retiring from the NFL in 2019. He should bring an astute defensive eye to the Maryland football staff as the Terrapins look for any way to improve its defense, which ranked ninth in the Big Ten in total defense a season ago by giving up an average of 357.1 yards per game. Maryland only yielded 23.2 points per game last season but the Terps gave up at least 30 points against all three ranked teams it faced (Michigan, Ohio State, and Penn State), and it allowed 31 points to Big Ten West champion Purdue.
Bowman retired from the NFL in 2019 to wrap up a career that spanned eight seasons with three Pro Bowl honors and four All-Pro honors. He also won the professional Butkus Award, the first Penn State player to win the professional Butkus Award to go with the school’s two all-time college Butkus Awards (LaVar Arrington and Paul Posluszny).
Bowman is a Maryland native, so joining the Terps is a bit of a homecoming moment for the former Nittany Lion, and it could help lead to an eventual coaching career down the line if that is something he is looking to get into.
Penn State has former Maryland quarterback Danny O’Brien on its football staff as an offensive analyst. Former Nittany Lions Calvin Lowry and Dan Connor are among those on the staff as an analyst as well.
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