John Bowman (born July 19, 1982) is the
defensive line coach for the
BC Lions
The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Lions compete in the West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and play their home games at BC Place.
The Lions played their first seas ...
of 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 ...
(CFL). He is also a former professional
Canadian football
Canadian football () is a sport played in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed oval-shaped ball into the opposing team's scoring area ( ...
defensive end
Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football.
This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formations over the years have substantially changed how the position is ...
who played for 14 seasons with the
Montreal Alouettes
The Montreal Alouettes (French: Les Alouettes de Montréal) are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has folded and been revived twice. The Alouettes compete in the East Division of the Canad ...
. He is a two-time
Grey Cup champion after winning in
2009 and
2010 and was named a CFL All-Star twice and a Divisional All-Star nine times. Bowman is the Alouettes' all-time leader in sacks with 134 in his career.
College career
Bowman played
college football for
Wingate
Wingate may refer to:
Places
New Zealand
* Wingate, New Zealand, a suburb of Lower Hutt
United Kingdom
* Wingate, County Durham
* Wingate Quarry, a Site of Special Scientific Interest in County Durham
* Old Wingate, County Durham
* Wingat ...
. John Bowman was a Don Hansen's Football Gazette All-American following the 2003 season. An All-SAC selection the same year, Bowman was fourth in the NCAA Division II in quarterback sacks (1.2/game) as a senior. His football coaches at Wingate were current head coach Joe Reich and Reich's predecessor, Bob Brush. Bowman is a member of the Wingate Sports Hall of Fame and the South Atlantic Conference Hall of Fame.
Professional career
Indoor football
In 2005, Bowman signed with the Daytona Beach Hawgs of the
National Indoor Football League
The National Indoor Football League (NIFL) was a professional indoor football league in the United States. For their first six years, the league had teams in markets not covered by either the Arena Football League or its developmental league, ...
. After the Hawgs became suspended from the postseason, Bowman signed with the
Sioux City Bandits
The Sioux City Bandits are a professional indoor football team based in Sioux City, Iowa, and compete as a member of Champions Indoor Football (CIF). The team was founded in 1999 as the Sioux City Attack. In 2001, the team assumed their current ...
of
United Indoor Football
United Indoor Football (UIF) was an indoor football league in the United States that operated from 2005 to 2008. Ten owners from the National Indoor Football League, including one expansion (the Dayton Warbirds, which never played a game in UIF) ...
. Following the 2005 season Bowman signed with the NIFL's
Rome Renegades
The National Indoor Football League (NIFL) was a professional indoor football league in the United States. For their first six years, the league had teams in markets not covered by either the Arena Football League or its developmental league, ...
.
Montreal Alouettes
In 2006, Bowman signed with the
Montreal Alouettes
The Montreal Alouettes (French: Les Alouettes de Montréal) are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has folded and been revived twice. The Alouettes compete in the East Division of the Canad ...
of 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 ...
(CFL). By his second season in the league, Bowman had established himself as one of the CFL's best pass rushers. From 2009-2011, Bowman had 3 continuous seasons producing double digit sacks, recording 12 each year. From 2013-2016, Bowman had another double digit streak, with 11, 12, 19, and 10 sacks by year. Entering his 8th season as an Alouette, at the age of 30, Montreal extended his contract for three more seasons. Bowman suffered a partially torn bicep in Week 8 of the 2018 season. He returned and produced a 5 sack effort in his final season, giving Bowman a career total of 126. During 214 career games, Bowman also accumulated 406 tackles, 31 forced fumbles, and one touchdown, which Bowman scored in what was announced as his final home game in the CFL. However, Bowman re-signed with Montreal in February 2019. He produced another quality season, with 8 sacks, 45 tackles, another forced fumble, and his first career interception. Bowman was named a division All-Star yet again, and helped Montreal return to the playoffs for the first time in 4 seasons. On February 5, 2021, following a cancelled
2020 season the Alouettes announced that they would not be re-signing Bowman for the 2021 season. He was released on February 16, 2021.
During his 14 seasons, Bowman was named a CFL-East All-Star on nine occasions, and a CFL All-Star twice, in addition to winning a pair of
Grey Cup games under head coach
Marc Trestman
Marc Marlyn Trestman (born January 15, 1956) is an American football and Canadian football coach. He led the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League (CFL) to back-to-back Grey Cup victories in 2009 and 2010, and another as head coac ...
. He is the Alouettes franchise leader with 134-career sacks, and sits sixth all-time in the CFL.
Coaching career
On January 17, 2022, it was announced that Bowman had joined the
BC Lions
The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Lions compete in the West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and play their home games at BC Place.
The Lions played their first seas ...
to serve as the team's
defensive line coach.
References
External links
Montreal Alouettes bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bowman, John
1982 births
Living people
American football defensive ends
Players of Canadian football from New York (state)
BC Lions coaches
Canadian football defensive linemen
Montreal Alouettes players
Sioux City Bandits players
Sportspeople from Brooklyn
Wingate Bulldogs football players
Players of American football from New York City