Alvin Bowen (born December 24, 1983) is a former

gridiron football Gridiron football,"Gridiron football"
''Encyclopædia Britannica''. Ret ...

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...

. He was drafted by the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. ...

in the fifth round of the

2008 NFL Draft The 2008 NFL Draft was the 73rd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players. The draft took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York, on April 26 and April 27, ...

. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

at Iowa State. Bowen has also played for the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 as ...

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team play ...

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...

, and the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

Saskatchewan Roughriders The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a professional Canadian football team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. The Roughriders compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division. The Roughriders were founded in 1 ...

and

Calgary Stampeders The Calgary Stampeders are a professional Canadian football team based in Calgary, Alberta. The Stampeders compete in the West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The club plays its home games at McMahon Stadium and are the third-old ...

. Born in

East Orange, New Jersey East Orange is a City (New Jersey), city in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 69,612. The city was List of municipalities in ...

, Bowen was raised in nearby Montclair, where he played football at Montclair High School.

College career

Bowen attended and played

at Iowa State. During his junior year, he recorded 155 tackles (finishing first in the nation), one

interception In ball-playing competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for a player of the same team b ...

, and one

fumble A fumble in gridiron football occurs when a player who has possession and control of the ball loses it before being downed (tackled), scoring, or going out of bounds. By rule, it is any act other than passing, kicking, punting, or successful ...

recovery. During his senior season, Bowen recorded 99 tackles, one interception, and one fumble recovery.

Buffalo Bills

Bowen was drafted by the

in the fifth round (147th overall) of the

. During training camp on August 1, Bowen suffered a serious knee injury. He was waived/injured on August 7 and subsequently placed on season-ending

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in th ...

. He was released by the Bills on September 5, 2009. He was re-signed to the

practice squad In sports, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. Frequently used in gridiron football, they serve as extra players during the team's practices, ...

on September 6, and was released on September 22. He was on the team again for weeks 13–17 due to the Bills suffering a string of injuries to their linebackers. Linebackers Paul Posluzny, Marcus Buggs, Kawika Mitchell and Keith Ellison all missed time due to injury.

Washington Redskins

Bowen was signed to the

practice squad on September 24. He was later promoted to the active roster on November 30, 2009. After one season, he was released from the Redskins on June 9, 2010.

Seattle Seahawks

Bowen signed with the

on August 7, 2010. He was waived on August 17.

Jacksonville Jaguars

Bowen signed with the

on August 20, 2010. He was released on September 4. He was signed to the practice squad the next day. He was signed from the practice squad on September 19 and waived on September 28. He was re-signed to the practice squad on September 30. On August 13, 2011, Bowen was waived by the Jaguars.

Denver Broncos

On August 15, 2011, he was claimed off waivers by the

Saskatchewan Roughriders

On March 8, 2012, Alvin Bowen signed with the

of the

. On April 19, Bowen was released by the 'Riders.

Calgary Stampeders

Bowen signed with the

on October 10, 2012. He was released by the Stampeders on October 13, 2014.

Saskatchewan Roughriders

Bowen was signed to the Saskatchewan Roughriders' practice roster on October 23, 2014. He was released by the Roughriders on November 13, 2014.

References

External links

*
Buffalo Bills bioIowa State Cyclones bioWashington Redskins bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bowen, Alvin 1983 births Living people Sportspeople from East Orange, New Jersey Players of American football from Essex County, New Jersey Montclair High School (New Jersey) alumni Sportspeople from Montclair, New Jersey American football linebackers Iowa State Cyclones football players Players of Canadian football from New Jersey Canadian football linebackers Buffalo Bills players Washington Redskins players Seattle Seahawks players Jacksonville Jaguars players Denver Broncos players Saskatchewan Roughriders players Calgary Stampeders players