Blue White Illustrated

B efore he ever steps foot on campus, Nick Bowers already holds a special place in Penn State recruiting lore. Bowers 2rst appeared on the Nittany Lions' radar soon a6er James Franklin and his coaching sta4 were hired. One of Franklin's sta4ers was Terry Smith, a for- mer Penn State player and Temple assistant who, while still with the Owls, had tried to lure the 6-foot-4, 250-pound tight end to Philadelphia. When Smith returned to coach at his alma mater, he made sure to keep Bowers' contact information handy. Problem was, Penn State still faced NCAA scholarship restrictions and there were other positions higher on the priority list than tight end. While there was early mu- tual interest, PSU hesitated before ex- tending an o4er. Then in July, Bowers visited Penn State with his Kittanning (Pa.) Senior High teammates for a seven-on-seven compe- tition and put up one of the best all- around performances at any camp of the summer. It added to Bowers' allure, no doubt, but it didn't change the fact that PSU's scholarships were still limited. "I talked with Franklin a6er [the seven- on-seven tournament] and he just told me that they were more in need of linemen and that they had restrictions on their scholarships," Bowers recalled. "But he told me that if the sanctions came o4, they'd o4er." Franklin followed through. When the NCAA restored PSU's full allotment of scholarships in September, it was Bowers whom Penn State reached out to 2rst. It was around 3 p.m., right before football practice when Bowers called Franklin to hear the news, cementing his place as the 2rst prospect to earn a Penn State schol- arship a6er the restrictions had been com- pletely reduced. "We think he has a chance to be really good," Franklin said once Bowers signed his letter of intent in February. "He can be an in-line tight end and be physical in the running game. He can 3ex out in pass- ing plays. He came to our seven-on-seven camp and did a really, really good job." There was, however, another issue. When Bowers visited for that seven- on-seven tournament, he was verbally committed to Pittsburgh. He originally chose the Panthers in January for a couple of reasons, but mostly because of the bond he had formed with Paul Chryst and his coaching sta4. But once Chryst le6 to take the head coach position at Wisconsin, and Pitt re- placed him with former Michigan State de- fensive coordinator Pat Narduzzi, Bowers began to second-guess his decision. Con- tributing to his uncertainty was the fact that he 2nally held an o4er from Penn State. "I had a pretty solid relationship with the old Pitt coaches because they recruited me 2rst and I talked to them a lot," Bowers said. "But once they le6, I already had a pretty good relationship with Coach Franklin." Before making a 2nal decision, Bowers decided to take o5cial visits to both schools the following January. Pitt came 2rst, Penn State second, and then the 2nal call. A self-described "outdoors guy," Bowers took into account the location of each campus. "That was a big part," he said. "Being in a city and being at Penn State is a completely di4erent atmosphere." The schools' academic o4erings were also critical. "My guidance counselor and me did a couple tests online to see where my interests were, and forestry was one of the main things," Bowers said. "Penn State is one of the best schools in the country for forestry." During his o5cial visit, he ate breakfast with the head of PSU's forestry department and spent additional time with his future coaches and teammates. Upon leaving, he thought to himself, "I was more comfort- able up there than I was at Pitt, so I just said this is what's best for me." The day a6er Bowers le6 campus, Franklin and Bob Shoop followed up with an in-home visit to see him and his family. When they le6, it was with his verbal commitment. One week later, Bowers signed on the dotted line in order to make it o5cial. "I was pretty relieved when I signed my letter of intent," he said. "I mean, I liked the recruiting process to a certain point, but, I don't know. I didn't like all the at- tention really all that much, so I was just relieved when I got it all over with, and I'm really happy now that it's almost time to go up." Because the possibility of that once didn't exist. ■ THE BOWERS FILE STATS Caught 53 passes for a school-record 846 yards as a junior, while also rushing for 314 yards and leading the team in tackles as a linebacker... Caught 32 passes for 503 yards and nine TDs during his senior season HONORS Named a three-star recruit, as well as the No. 18 player in Pennsylvania by Rivals.com... Named first-team Class AAA All-State by the Pennsylvania Football Writers Association... First-team All-Allegheny Conference on of- fense (2013 and '14) and defense (2013) A change of heart leads Bowers to PSU | CLICK HERE to see video of Bowers in action.

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