I was on the road in Merrillville last night to watch four-star outside linebacker Drayk Bowen. Notre Dame has really ramped up its recruitment of the No. 22 overall prospect in the class of 2023. Bowen is the No. 1 player in the state and No. 2 OLB in the country.
Here are some observations and notes from the night.
PRE-GAME
• When I first entered the stadium roughly one hour prior to kickoff, Bowen was working on punting. He had a few boomers, a few shanks and plenty of stuff in between. When you're as athletic as he is at 6-2 and 215 pounds, you tend to just do it all at the high school level. Bowen is one of those types of players.
• Bowen shifted to working with the linebackers when it was time for individual drills. The usual stuff; flipping the hips, backpedaling and working on planting and getting up field.
• Then Bowen went to work with the running backs. Prior to doing so, though, he lined up as a quarterback and practiced a few read options. That turned out to be of no use, though, as he never lined up behind center during the game. Offensively, he was the team's primary tailback. He only missed a couple series on offense.
NOTES FROM PRE-GAME CONVERSATION WITH BOWEN'S FATHER
• Bowen weighed 201 pounds when he visited Notre Dame for the first time in June. He had surgery on his mouth, and he wasn't able to eat as he normally does for some time. He spent most of the summer getting back up to 215 pounds.
• Baseball is very much a factor in Bowen's recruitment. If you were surprised LSU and Auburn made Bowen's top 5 earlier this month, don't be. His dad told me he has great relationships with both of the baseball staffs at those Southern schools. Baseball is big down there. So is football. It's a perfect combination of what Bowen is looking for in the program of his future.
• Bowen will be attending the USC game this season as a recruit. It sounds like he's almost a lock to come back for the UNC game, too. Link Jarrett and the Notre Dame baseball staff are working hard to make that happen. The baseball team will be honored for winning the ACC Championship during that game, and Jarrett wants Bowen to be there. Notre Dame's rise to being relative in baseball is huge when it concerns trying to get Bowen to commit to the Irish.
FIRST HALF
• Bowen's first two carries went for first downs. He's a physical runner; rarely does the first tackler take him down. Andrean's opening touchdown drive was capped by a nice touchdown pass in the corner of the end zone. The first Andrean player to bearhug the player who scored? Bowen. I noticed he is a true team guy throughout the night. His dad seemed genuine and nice, so it's probably an apple didn't fall far from the tree situation. Good people.
• Merrillville went right down the field and scored on its first drive too. The game plan was evident from the very start; keep the ball away from Bowen. The Pirates ran outside handoffs to the side Bowen was not lined up on. They threw screen passes to that side. The 59ers couldn't stop either, and there was nothing Bowen could really do about it. That would become the theme of the night...
• Bowen started the second offensive series on the bench, but he made some serious noise when he came back onto the field later in the drive. He caught a screen and gained positive yardage capped by a huge truck-stick takedown on the sideline to set up third and manageable. He scored on a 20-yard rush up the middle on the very next play to put Andrean ahead 14-6 at the time.
• Bowen had his best defensive play of the night on the next drive. Merrillville was on the move again but faced fourth and medium just inside 59ers territory. Bowen, covering Merrillville's slot man, took a few steps back into coverage before planting and darting for his man who ran a shallow curl at the sticks. Bowen got there right when the ball did, and the Merrillville receiver had no chance of coming away with the catch. The ball hit the turf and Andrean took over on downs thanks to Bowen's big-time play.
• Bowen had one carry that was bottled up on Andrean's next possession. He booted the ball away on his first punt of the night. He wasn't much of a factor offensively on Andrean's fourth drive, which resulted in another passing touchdown. Merrillville kept punching back, answering every Andrean touchdown drive with one of its own in the first half. Andrean led 21-20 at halftime; Merrillville missed an extra point.
• Bowen's offensive success masked what was a frustrating half defensively for him. He wasn't able to do much. He lined up outside primarily in coverage, and Merrillville simply refused to go his direction with the football. Andrean hardly ever sent Bowen on a blitz. The few times he did blitz, the ball was already out before he could get to the quarterback. It only got worse for Bowen in the second half.
SECOND HALF
• Bowen had a punt blocked by Merrillville's 6-5, 340-pound defensive tackle Kenneth Grant. Bowen jumped on the ball at his own 5-yard line, and he was shaken up when Grant collided with him while going for the ball as well. He stayed down on the field for roughly 30 seconds before walking to the sideline. He did not play the ensuing defensive series, and Merrillville scored two plays later to take its first lead of the night.
• Bowen got the first two touches of Andrean's next offensive series, but it didn't go anywhere. Merrillville's next offensive drive stalled too, but Andrean's punt returner fumbled and Merrillville took over at the Andrean 38-yard line leading 27-21. The Pirates again scored two plays later on a 35-yard touchdown run. Merrillville ran right while Bowen was lined up on the opposite side. Story of the night.
• Andrean twice turned the ball over on downs in the red zone trailing 34-21. Bowen was not on the field for either offensive play.
• With the game already decided (Merrillville up 40-21 late in the fourth quarter), Bowen prepared to punt from near his own goal line. Again, he had the kicked blocked by Grant who recovered it for a touchdown. As an aside, Grant is a menace. He's just a three-star in the class of 2022, but Michigan, Ohio State and Wisconsin have all entered the fold in his recruitment. He played left guard and defensive tackle for most of the game. He has the body composition of a Division I offensive tackle if you ask me. He's a little slow, but if he evolves athletically to go with his size then he could be a really great player at the next level.
• Bowen's body language was not great after he had a punt blocked for the second time. Granted, none of Andrean's players had positive body language. The 59ers were outscored 27-0 in the second half.
• It'll be interesting to see if the 59ers finally make the adjustments necessary to let Bowen thrive defensively at some point this season. The way Friday's game played out, there was simply no chance for Bowen to make an impact.
• Andrean's offensive game plan ran stale too. Bowen didn't get the ball nearly as much as he could've. It makes sense to save some of his juice for defense since that's his primary focus, but he wasn't exerting much energy there the way the game played out. Overall, it was just a disappointing night for Bowen and his team. That said, the physical tools are there. Bowen proved capable of shedding blockers and outworking offensive tackles, but any time he did those things Friday it seemed to be all for nothing since the ball was going the other way.
RECRUITING UPDATE
• Bowen's top five choices are Auburn, Clemson, Indiana, LSU and Notre Dame. His father said they are going to try to make it to a game for all of those teams this season. Bowen said his decision timeline is dependent on how those visits go, so don't expect him to make up his mind early this fall. He's going to take his time and really evaluate all of his options.
• Bowen said his conversations with Notre Dame coaches Chad Bowden and Marcus Freeman have really picked up this summer. He speaks with those guys a couple times per week. He has also now started to regularly talk to Notre Dame baseball coaches Rich Wallace and Link Jarrett. Notre Dame is very much in the mix for Bowen because of the baseball upside.
Here are some observations and notes from the night.
PRE-GAME
• When I first entered the stadium roughly one hour prior to kickoff, Bowen was working on punting. He had a few boomers, a few shanks and plenty of stuff in between. When you're as athletic as he is at 6-2 and 215 pounds, you tend to just do it all at the high school level. Bowen is one of those types of players.
• Bowen shifted to working with the linebackers when it was time for individual drills. The usual stuff; flipping the hips, backpedaling and working on planting and getting up field.
• Then Bowen went to work with the running backs. Prior to doing so, though, he lined up as a quarterback and practiced a few read options. That turned out to be of no use, though, as he never lined up behind center during the game. Offensively, he was the team's primary tailback. He only missed a couple series on offense.
NOTES FROM PRE-GAME CONVERSATION WITH BOWEN'S FATHER
• Bowen weighed 201 pounds when he visited Notre Dame for the first time in June. He had surgery on his mouth, and he wasn't able to eat as he normally does for some time. He spent most of the summer getting back up to 215 pounds.
• Baseball is very much a factor in Bowen's recruitment. If you were surprised LSU and Auburn made Bowen's top 5 earlier this month, don't be. His dad told me he has great relationships with both of the baseball staffs at those Southern schools. Baseball is big down there. So is football. It's a perfect combination of what Bowen is looking for in the program of his future.
• Bowen will be attending the USC game this season as a recruit. It sounds like he's almost a lock to come back for the UNC game, too. Link Jarrett and the Notre Dame baseball staff are working hard to make that happen. The baseball team will be honored for winning the ACC Championship during that game, and Jarrett wants Bowen to be there. Notre Dame's rise to being relative in baseball is huge when it concerns trying to get Bowen to commit to the Irish.
FIRST HALF
• Bowen's first two carries went for first downs. He's a physical runner; rarely does the first tackler take him down. Andrean's opening touchdown drive was capped by a nice touchdown pass in the corner of the end zone. The first Andrean player to bearhug the player who scored? Bowen. I noticed he is a true team guy throughout the night. His dad seemed genuine and nice, so it's probably an apple didn't fall far from the tree situation. Good people.
• Merrillville went right down the field and scored on its first drive too. The game plan was evident from the very start; keep the ball away from Bowen. The Pirates ran outside handoffs to the side Bowen was not lined up on. They threw screen passes to that side. The 59ers couldn't stop either, and there was nothing Bowen could really do about it. That would become the theme of the night...
• Bowen started the second offensive series on the bench, but he made some serious noise when he came back onto the field later in the drive. He caught a screen and gained positive yardage capped by a huge truck-stick takedown on the sideline to set up third and manageable. He scored on a 20-yard rush up the middle on the very next play to put Andrean ahead 14-6 at the time.
• Bowen had his best defensive play of the night on the next drive. Merrillville was on the move again but faced fourth and medium just inside 59ers territory. Bowen, covering Merrillville's slot man, took a few steps back into coverage before planting and darting for his man who ran a shallow curl at the sticks. Bowen got there right when the ball did, and the Merrillville receiver had no chance of coming away with the catch. The ball hit the turf and Andrean took over on downs thanks to Bowen's big-time play.
• Bowen had one carry that was bottled up on Andrean's next possession. He booted the ball away on his first punt of the night. He wasn't much of a factor offensively on Andrean's fourth drive, which resulted in another passing touchdown. Merrillville kept punching back, answering every Andrean touchdown drive with one of its own in the first half. Andrean led 21-20 at halftime; Merrillville missed an extra point.
• Bowen's offensive success masked what was a frustrating half defensively for him. He wasn't able to do much. He lined up outside primarily in coverage, and Merrillville simply refused to go his direction with the football. Andrean hardly ever sent Bowen on a blitz. The few times he did blitz, the ball was already out before he could get to the quarterback. It only got worse for Bowen in the second half.
SECOND HALF
• Bowen had a punt blocked by Merrillville's 6-5, 340-pound defensive tackle Kenneth Grant. Bowen jumped on the ball at his own 5-yard line, and he was shaken up when Grant collided with him while going for the ball as well. He stayed down on the field for roughly 30 seconds before walking to the sideline. He did not play the ensuing defensive series, and Merrillville scored two plays later to take its first lead of the night.
• Bowen got the first two touches of Andrean's next offensive series, but it didn't go anywhere. Merrillville's next offensive drive stalled too, but Andrean's punt returner fumbled and Merrillville took over at the Andrean 38-yard line leading 27-21. The Pirates again scored two plays later on a 35-yard touchdown run. Merrillville ran right while Bowen was lined up on the opposite side. Story of the night.
• Andrean twice turned the ball over on downs in the red zone trailing 34-21. Bowen was not on the field for either offensive play.
• With the game already decided (Merrillville up 40-21 late in the fourth quarter), Bowen prepared to punt from near his own goal line. Again, he had the kicked blocked by Grant who recovered it for a touchdown. As an aside, Grant is a menace. He's just a three-star in the class of 2022, but Michigan, Ohio State and Wisconsin have all entered the fold in his recruitment. He played left guard and defensive tackle for most of the game. He has the body composition of a Division I offensive tackle if you ask me. He's a little slow, but if he evolves athletically to go with his size then he could be a really great player at the next level.
• Bowen's body language was not great after he had a punt blocked for the second time. Granted, none of Andrean's players had positive body language. The 59ers were outscored 27-0 in the second half.
• It'll be interesting to see if the 59ers finally make the adjustments necessary to let Bowen thrive defensively at some point this season. The way Friday's game played out, there was simply no chance for Bowen to make an impact.
• Andrean's offensive game plan ran stale too. Bowen didn't get the ball nearly as much as he could've. It makes sense to save some of his juice for defense since that's his primary focus, but he wasn't exerting much energy there the way the game played out. Overall, it was just a disappointing night for Bowen and his team. That said, the physical tools are there. Bowen proved capable of shedding blockers and outworking offensive tackles, but any time he did those things Friday it seemed to be all for nothing since the ball was going the other way.
RECRUITING UPDATE
• Bowen's top five choices are Auburn, Clemson, Indiana, LSU and Notre Dame. His father said they are going to try to make it to a game for all of those teams this season. Bowen said his decision timeline is dependent on how those visits go, so don't expect him to make up his mind early this fall. He's going to take his time and really evaluate all of his options.
• Bowen said his conversations with Notre Dame coaches Chad Bowden and Marcus Freeman have really picked up this summer. He speaks with those guys a couple times per week. He has also now started to regularly talk to Notre Dame baseball coaches Rich Wallace and Link Jarrett. Notre Dame is very much in the mix for Bowen because of the baseball upside.
