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Appears as if Manny Bowen is back with the team.....

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"I'm open for business again"
 
Article by Marty Leap on BSD....
https://www.blackshoediaries.com/20...y-back-with-penn-state-nittany-lions-football

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Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports


Penn State’s linebacker room - and defense - could be getting better soon if social media is any indication.

After being removed from Penn State’s roster prior to the Fiesta Bowl, it appeared that Manny Bowen’s career was over for the Nittany Lions. He did not play in the team’s final three regular season games, and was also suspended for the Rose Bowl following the 2016 campaign.

Bowen posted a picture of himself from the 2017 season with the caption “Mood!!” on his Instagram account Thursday night and a number of current players replied with comments that seemed to indicate Bowen is or would soon be back.

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Entering the 2018 season, one of the few positions with any question marks appeared to be linebacker. Having Bowen back in the fold would go a long way toward answering these questions though as he brings a combination of talent and experience to the linebacker room.

Bowen has played in 30 games the past three seasons recording 136 tackles, 12 tackles for a loss, three sacks, and two forced fumbles. He should replace Jason Cabinda as the team’s MIKE linebacker, as well as the signal caller on defense.

Having Bowen back in the fold also lessens what will be asked of Micah Parsons (true freshman) and Ellis Brooks (RS freshman). This could allow the Nittany Lions to use Parsons as more of a quarterback-terrorizing pass rusher, while Brooks can ease into his role at MIKE.

In any case, it will be something to monitor as summer practice nears.
 
If he comes back, he is the best linebacker on the roster. The staff will put him where he will play the best. The fact that he played the Will in the past, does not automatically mean he will be playing the Will this year. There is an opening at the Mike. The Mike is the most important guy in the LB corps. The Mike makes the calls, sets the defense in the front seven, and is counted on, for consistent play. Ideally, you want the Mike to be experienced, and Manny Bowen has more experience than any other LB on the roster. Koa and Cam have switched positions now, and I don't think that's a coincidence. That has a connection to Manny's return. I think you will see this, by the end of August: Sam-Cam Brown, Will-Koa Farmer, Mike-Manny Bowen.

Now, this also gives Pry some flexibility for Parsons. NOW, you can create packages for Parsons. You might see him playing the star linebacker on passing downs, you might see him line up over the center, you might see him blitzing from the outside, and you might even see him occasionally with a hand in the grass crashing down on short yardage situations. You can now do more with the younger guys also, like Brooks and Miller, and you still have Cooper, who is healthy for the first time in his career.

It's huge.
 
If he comes back, he is the best linebacker on the roster. The staff will put him where he will play the best. The fact that he played the Will in the past, does not automatically mean he will be playing the Will this year. There is an opening at the Mike. The Mike is the most important guy in the LB corps. The Mike makes the calls, sets the defense in the front seven, and is counted on, for consistent play. Ideally, you want the Mike to be experienced, and Manny Bowen has more experience than any other LB on the roster. Koa and Cam have switched positions now, and I don't think that's a coincidence. That has a connection to Manny's return. I think you will see this, by the end of August: Sam-Cam Brown, Will-Koa Farmer, Mike-Manny Bowen.

Now, this also gives Pry some flexibility for Parsons. NOW, you can create packages for Parsons. You might see him playing the star linebacker on passing downs, you might see him line up over the center, you might see him blitzing from the outside, and you might even see him occasionally with a hand in the grass crashing down on short yardage situations. You can now do more with the younger guys also, like Brooks and Miller, and you still have Cooper, who is healthy for the first time in his career.

It's huge.

I wonder if Miller wins that Sam position. There are always a few guys that Franklin really praises in the spring, and he is usually very prescient with who makes a big jump the following season. Miller was definitely a guy that JF and other coaches mentioned repeatedly.

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College football walk-ons: an uphill battle that can be won
Frank Fitzpatrick | The Philadelphia Inquirer
Last Updated - Dec 15, 2015 16:16 EST
Contact |Archive |RSS


Walk-ons are college football's dreamers.



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Most, content to imagine some Rudy-like moment on an autumn afternoon, endure all the game's thankless rigors while enjoying little of its glory. The more ambitious hope to shine brightly enough to earn scholarships. And a few -- inspired by the long-shot stories of Antonio Brown, J.J. Watt, and others -- envision themselves on NFL rosters.

While the motivations of walk-ons haven't changed much since Amos Alonzo Stagg devised the concept of athletic scholarships in 1892, their prominence has.

Thanks primarily to Rudy, the rousing 1993 movie about Notre Dame's Rudy Ruettiger, and the professional stardom of one-time walk-ons like Brown, Watt, Jordy Nelson, and Clay Matthews, the subject has moved out of the shadows.

RELATED: The best movies about college sports

Books, newspapers, and magazines regularly chronicle the best of these football fairy tales. Several websites are devoted to the subject. Next month, Greater, a film about Arkansas' Brandon Burlsworth, who went from walk-on to all-American before dying in a 1999 car crash, is scheduled to be released.

And since 2010, the Burlsworth Trophy has been awarded to the top collegiate player who began as a walk-on, an honor that this year went to Oklahoma QB Baker Mayfield.

"There's no question that we're hearing more about walk-ons than ever before," said Dave Frank, vice-president of Athnet, a company that advises and tracks these athletes. "The Internet and social media help get these stories out there."

Locally, Penn State defensive end Carl Nassib, a walk-on from Malvern Prep, led the nation in sacks, won the Lombardi (best lineman) and Hendricks (best defensive end) Awards and was a Burlsworth Trophy finalist. And at Temple, New Jersey's Will Hayes became the starting strong safety and a respected leader for the bowl-bound Owls.

RELATED: Complete 2015-16 college football bowl schedule

"Starting out as a walk-on definitely was a tough challenge," said Hayes, who as a two-way star at Howell High attracted no interest from Division I or II schools. "But I would recommend it to anyone. If you're really convinced you're as good as you think you are, you shouldn't settle for something less."

Nassib, whose grit earned him a scholarship at a time when NCAA sanctions limited Penn State to just 65, said that even as an undersized, walk-on freshman, he never doubted himself.

"You need to have that," he said. "You can't second-guess yourself or you'll get pummeled by 300-pound guys."

No one knows precisely how many walk-ons there are at the 128 Football Bowl Subdivision schools, where scholarships are capped at 85 but rosters frequently top 100. But by any estimate the number is well over 1,000.

"They're always going to be needed because they give coaches plenty of bodies to practice with, plenty of scout-team players to simulate other team's offense, defense, and sets," said Rick Allen, a former college-athletics compliance officer who operates a consulting business, Informed Athlete, that counsels potential walk-ons and their parents.

Players like Hayes and Nassib, who get scholarships, are the exceptions. Though the NCAA compiles no specific data on walk-ons, experts believe the vast majority quit after a short time.

"That happens all the time when these guys realize they're never going to get off the practice squad," said Frank, "or that they're going to have to do this for two or three years just to maybe get into a game their senior year."

Hayes and Nassib also had the advantage of being "preferred" or "recruited" walk-ons in a two-tiered system.

Those "preferred" or "recruited" usually arrive with guaranteed roster spots. Other hopefuls must try out in the spring.

"At one school, 'preferred' might mean you have a guaranteed spot for a year," said Allen. "But at another it might mean that while you don't have to go through an open tryout, there's still no roster guarantee.

"Another distinction is that Division I walk-ons deemed to have been recruited who then want to transfer to another Division I school must sit out a year, just like scholarship players."

Typically, walk-ons are entitled to the same medical, training, dining, and equipment benefits as scholarship athletes. But occasionally, especially at smaller, non-FBS colleges, they're relegated to substandard locker-room annexes or denied access to the main training table.

"It still happens," said Allen, "but not so much anymore at the Power Five conference schools."

Nassib was focused on eventually going to medical school when Penn State contacted him about walking on. The brother of New York Giants backup quarterback Ryan Nassib, he was thrilled to get an opportunity at a major program in his home state.

"I was like, 'Oh, definitely coming here,' " he said.

He added considerable weight to his 6-foot-7 frame and worked so tirelessly that in 2013 then-coach Bill O'Brien granted him a scholarship.

Hayes, meanwhile, was a 5-9 defensive back who drew interest from only Division III schools. Unwilling to give up his Division I dream, he took the advice of a former Howell teammate and played a year at a prep school, New York's Milford Academy.

Milford went 9-2, Hayes led the team in interceptions, and then-Temple coach Steve Addazio offered him a preferred walk-on spot.

"Even though I didn't have a scholarship, I felt like I could get one and become a starter," Hayes said. "I worked as hard as I could in practice to get noticed. My sophomore year Coach [Matt] Rhule . . . gave me an opportunity to contribute on special teams. And from there I just progressed until I got my scholarship."

Most who walk on, said Allen, are smitten by the prospect of running onto a stadium field in uniform. Blinded by that goal, they often don't investigate further.

"They and their parents don't always do the research," he said. "They need to know how they'll be treated and whether the coach will be interested in them as individuals. What I hear from a lot of parents of walk-ons is, 'Our son chose this place because it was his dream school.' "

And whether a walk-on ends his career satisfied or not probably depends on the scope of his dream.

"If you don't have big dreams," said Hayes, who hopes to play in the NFL, "why even try?"

This article was written by Frank Fitzpatrick from The Philadelphia Inquirer and was legally licensed through the NewsCred publisher network.

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Matt McGloin
 
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Really nice to see. I like seeing coaches stick with a kid who might be doing dumb stuff but isn't a bad human being. That's the kind of thing that can change Manny's life in a positive way. Football has been a teaching ground at Penn State for a long time. Franklin preaches family and that means you don't abandon your troubled ones. Hopefully Manny recognizes the opportunity he has and also realizes how he can positively impact the younger, more impressionable guys in the team.
 
Really nice to see. I like seeing coaches stick with a kid who might be doing dumb stuff but isn't a bad human being. That's the kind of thing that can change Manny's life in a positive way. Football has been a teaching ground at Penn State for a long time. Franklin preaches family and that means you don't abandon your troubled ones. Hopefully Manny recognizes the opportunity he has and also realizes how he can positively impact the younger, more impressionable guys in the team.
Well said. Appreciated.
 
I recognize that there is money being thrown around like that but, right or wrong, the NCAA doesn't monitor what cars the student athletes are driving as closely as the NCAA monitors who is on scholarship and who is not on scholarship. When you start playing games directly with the scholarships that are being provided, the NCAA will be all over any potential abuse.

Penn State ICA Compliance monitors the cars very closely.
 
I’m excited for Manny. Sounds like he’s turned things around. Praying he continues to improve his life. It’s my understanding he had a rough childhood.
 
Manny, IIRC, played through the Michigan State game on November 4th. He was suspended and missed the last 4 games including the bowl game. So he hasn't exactly taken the year off.
I'm clearly fuzzy here. I thought he was suspended in 2016. And DNP in 2017.

And this is 2018.

I'm still doing common core math, so help me out.
 
Good news, just can't depend on him. Been suspended two consecutive years. Whatever we get out of him is a bonus. Hopefully he gets his stuff together, guess he's on his last strike.

Solid player, expected him to take a jump last year and didn't see it. Then again, he's missed a lot of games the last two years so hard to improve when you are suspended from your team. Hate to be Deb Downer, but rarely see guys like this evolve with repeated history. Hope it works out, we could sure as hell use him at backer this year.
 
I hope that Manny doesn’t come back like Pete Harris (Franco’s brother) did after a year off. Pete was an AA safety his junior year and then was JAG after sitting out a year for academic problems. Sadly he died at the early age of 49 from a heart attack in 2006 in Palm Beach Gardens Florida, where he was an executive chef at PGA National resort, coincidentally where my parents lived at the time.

Pete was not one to be known from walking away from weed. Not sure if that had anything to do with it, but I know he smoked quite a bit as a kid in Mt. Holly, NJ.
 
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