The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1351834
44 THE WOLVERINE APRIL 2021 O n Feb. 28, former Texas Tech quarterback Alan Bowman an- nounced he would be transferring to Michigan. He has three years of eligibility remaining and will be al- lowed to play right away as a gradu- ate transfer. Bowman's late-February announcement came on the heels of a visit to Ann Arbor that weekend. The Grapevine, Texas, native put together a strong résumé during his three years in Lubbock as a Red Raider, starting 16 games and throw- ing for 5,260 yards, 33 touchdowns, 17 interceptions and a 67.0 comple- tion percentage. As a freshman in 2018, Bowman started eight games (missing four with a collapsed lung) and threw for 2,638 yards, 17 touchdowns and seven interceptions while completing 69.4 percent of his attempts. Injuries hampered him once again as a sophomore in 2019. Bowman compiled 1,020 yards, six touch- downs, three picks and a 65.6 com- pletion percentage in three outings that season, before breaking his col- larbone and missing the rest of the year. He took a medical redshirt as a result. An ankle ailment limited the 6-3, 215-pounder to eight contests in 2020, when he racked up 1,602 yards, 10 touchdowns, seven interceptions and a 64.7 completion percentage. Brandon Soliz of RedRaiderSports. com (Texas Tech's Rivals site) told The Wolverine in March that Bowman has "above average" accuracy and is "great" at making short and inter- mediate throws. Soliz also noted that leadership, knowledge and tough- ness are three of the signal-caller 's best attributes. "One thing to keep in mind with Bowman is that he learned early from [former Texas Tech and cur- rent Arizona Cardinals head coach] Kliff Kingsbury, who is often talked about as a player's coach," Soliz ex- plained. "He spent a ton of time with Kingsbury his freshman season and even played well enough to grab the backup quarterback spot ahead of Jett Duffey, who was already established within the program when [starter] McLane Carter was injured. "Former Texas Tech offensive co- ordinator David Yost used to refer to him as a 'football junkie.'" Once he arrives on campus this summer, Bowman will compete with three other scholarship quarterbacks for the Wolverines' starting job — redshirt freshman Cade McNamara, and freshmen J.J. McCarthy and Dan Villari. — Austin Fox MIKE MACDONALD SEES DEFENSE AS A 'BLANK CANVAS' Michigan began spring practice Feb. 22, wanting to get back on the practice field as soon as possible after a disappointing 2020 season. Defensively, the Wolverines are busy installing their new attack un- der first-year coordinator Mike Mac- donald, who spent the last seven sea- sons with the Baltimore Ravens, most recently coaching linebackers, after serving in a graduate assistant role at the University of Georgia. Macdonald and his staff are in the process of gauging what their play- ers can give them and where each guy fits. While he has a set system he wants to put in place, the coach knows he has to work with the per- sonnel that resides on the team. "It will be very much tailored to who can do what, the guys we have on our roster," Macdonald said at a press conference March 4. "It's hard for me to tell you what we're going to be because we have different players with different skill sets than places I've been in the past. "The principles will be the same MICHIGAN FOOTBALL Former Texas Tech Quarterback Alan Bowman Will Transfer To U-M In three years as a Red Raider, Bowman started 16 games and threw for 5,260 yards, with 33 touchdowns, 17 interceptions and a 67.0 completion percentage. PHOTO COURTESY TEXAS TECH ATHLETICS 2021 MICHIGAN FOOTBALL SCHEDULE Date Opponent (2020 Record) Sept. 4 Western Michigan (4-2) Sept. 11 Washington (3-1) Sept. 18 Northern Illinois (0-6) Sept. 25 Rutgers (3-6) Oct. 2 at Wisconsin (4-3) Oct. 9 at Nebraska (3-5) Oct. 16 Bye Oct. 23 Northwestern (7-2) Oct. 30 at Michigan State (2-5) Nov. 6 Indiana (6-2) Nov. 13 at Penn State (4-5) Nov. 20 at Maryland (2-3) Nov. 27 Ohio State (7-1)