WP:Bowen's Got the Write Stuff-Redskins' Hard-Hitting Safety Is Aspiring Author

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http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A6597-2003Nov22.html

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Bowen's Got the Write Stuff

Redskins' Hard-Hitting Safety Is Aspiring Author

By Nunyo Demasio

Washington Post Staff Writer

Sunday, November 23, 2003; Page E07

Matt Bowen, a journalism major from Iowa, leads the Redskins in interceptions (3) and concussions. "He likes to go in there and throw his body around and knock people out," safety Ifeanyi Ohalete.

Every Tuesday, the "Inside Iowa Football" column chronicled the foibles of the Hawkeyes for the Daily Iowan, the school's newspaper. The writer, Matt Bowen, an aspiring journalist and novelist who also happened to be a reserve safety on the football team. But his professional priorities changed in 1998 after making marked improvement during his junior season.

Bowen honed his football skills enough to be selected in the sixth round of the 2000 NFL draft; he signed a four-year, $6 million contract with the Washington Redskins in the offseason. His hard-hitting style -- which has led to concussions for both himself and his teammates -- has made Bowen one of the steadier players during the Redskins' roller coaster season.

As the Redskins (4-6) try to revive their flickering playoff hopes Sunday night against the Dolphins (6-4) at Pro Player Stadium in Miami, Bowen, a 6-foot-1, 207-pound strong safety, shares the team lead in interceptions (three) with cornerback Fred Smoot and safety Ifeanyi Ohalete and has 60 tackles, including 45 solo, many on vicious hits.

The Redskins envision Bowen, 26, as a long-term solution at safety, which had been one of the weakest links on the defense over the past several years. Although Bowen's hold on the NFL is no longer tenuous, the former student journalist looks forward to eventually realizing his other ambition.

"This is my dream job but after my career ends, my other dream job is to be an author or a [sports] columnist," said Bowen, who grew up an avid reader of the Chicago Tribune. "When I'm done I wouldn't mind sitting in the press box, and having a couple of beers and writing about the game."

Bowen writes a column every two weeks for Pro Football Weekly, giving his opinion on a range of topics mostly related to the NFL. Bowen does his writing gig on Tuesdays, the players' only day off. The former Green Bay Packer has written about playing on the same teams as childhood heroes Brett Favre and Bruce Smith; the differences between living in Green Bay and Washington; and the fierce locker room debates -- and friendly wagers -- revolving around college alma maters. In an Oct. 10 column, Bowen predicted that his beloved Chicago Cubs would win the 2003 World Series. "Crisp air, fading ivy, cold Budweiser and Sammy," Bowen wrote to start his column. "Could October be any better?"

Since graduating from Iowa with a degree in journalism and mass communications, Bowen has written for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and publications for each NFL team for which he's played: the St. Louis Rams (2000-01), the Packers (last season) and the Redskins.

The fourth-year player fantasizes about becoming a sports columnist -- Bowen feels that covering a beat would be too difficult because of his empathy for the players. But Bowen has definite plans to write a novel based on his NFL experiences after he retires. He keeps a journal during the season, jotting down details he wants to capture or humorous exchanges he doesn't want to forget.

"If I get a couple more concussions," Bowen said, grinning, "the notes will be there."

Several former NFL players have found moderate success as authors. Bowen most admires Tim Green, the 39-year-old author of eight novels and two non-fiction books. Green was the Atlanta Falcons' first-round draft choice in 1986. In 1996 -- three years after retiring -- Green published "The Dark Side of the Game." The non-fiction book -- which Bowen read while in college -- briefly made the New York Times bestseller list. The memoir contained subjects such as drug abuse, financial mismanagement, gambling and steroids. Although Bowen has been impressed by Green's works, he intends to show a brighter side of the game.

"I think people have written books about this league and they've shown the wrong side of it," said Bowen who describes his writing style as conversational and direct. "I think this league is special. There's a lot of great people, great coaches. There's a lot more positives than negatives."

Defensive backs coach George Catavolos has half-jokingly asked Bowen if one chapter in the book will be on Catavolos.

"Matt just laughed at me," Catavolos recalled, laughing. "He didn't tell me anything, so I guess not."

Although Smoot doesn't realize it, Bowen plans on doing one chapter on the colorful cornerback. Most teammates and coaches are aware of Bowen's outside endeavors. At a team dinner last Saturday night in Charlotte, when the conversation among a few teammates turned to post-NFL careers, Bowen discussed his journalism background and aspirations.

Bowen has a dry sense of humor, laidback personality and admits to being eccentric -- ostensibly a trait for writers. With a bald head and irascible demeanor on the football field, Bowen doesn't evoke the image of an author. Several Redskins players cited wideout Darnerien McCants, who does art work for teammates, as one example of a football player who bucks the stereotype. But reserve quarterback Tim Hasselbeck expressed skepticism about Bowen's writing ability.

"I'd have to check Matt Bowen's articles and see if he can spell," said Hasselbeck, only half-smiling. "Because usually when you see a guy with a shaved head -- he has that tough-football-player look -- you don't think writing."

"Plus, he's from Iowa, a Big Ten school," continued the Boston College alumnus. "I'd like to check to see if his sentences are grammatically correct. I'm sure he has a girlfriend or someone who's proofreading it for him."

A quiet kid who expressed himself better on paper, Bowen showed a proclivity for writing at Glenbard West High in Glen Ellyn, Ill., a Chicago suburb of roughly 30,000. Bowen -- who starred in baseball, basketball and football -- had no intentions of becoming a writer until he graduated from high school. After receiving a scholarship to play quarterback for the Hawkeyes, Bowen redshirted his freshman year, when he took several writing courses. Bowen moved to nickel back his sophomore year, and had an unspectacular season.

Bowen received more attention writing weekly columns for the Daily Iowan. Instead of focusing on X's and O's, Bowen often detailed teammates's idiosyncrasies such as their dinner habits. The humor column became so popular that players asked Bowen to be among those skewered. During the offseason, Bowen wrote general features, which helped him collect clips in preparation for a journalism career.

"You have to be a realist," explained Bowen, who hopes to write crime novels after publishing an NFL book. "The percentages aren't very high for guys that go to the NFL or any professional sport."

One of Bowen's proudest moments as a journalist occurred Feb. 9, 1999, when he got an "exclusive" saying that wideout and returner Tim Dwight was coming back to run track for the Hawkeyes. After starring as a rookie for the Atlanta Falcons in the 1999 Super Bowl against the Denver Broncos, Dwight returned to Iowa partly to finish school. Dwight -- who played two seasons at Iowa with Bowen -- hadn't spoken extensively about his return to college. But Bowen called Dwight and got an interview for the Daily Iowan that was picked up by wire services and other newspapers. "That may not be big time," Bowen said. "But when you're in college, that's kinda cool."

Bowen became a starter during his junior season, and showed enough promise to make the NFL a career option. Although the Hawkeyes finished 1-10 during Bowen's senior year, he flourished with a team-high 92 tackles. Bowen made the first-team all Big Ten and second-team all-American teams, and performed well in pre-draft showcases. "I wasn't going to be a first-round pick or anything like that," said Bowen, "but I knew I'd at least get a shot with a team. That's all I wanted."

Bowen was selected 198th overall in the 2000 draft by the Rams, who were coming off their Super Bowl XXXIV title. Bowen -- a long shot to make the team -- became the club's rookie of the year.

But Bowen broke his right foot during the 2001 season opener against the Philadelphia Eagles and was placed on the injured reserve, which ended his season. St. Louis released Bowen on Nov. 16, and two weeks later, he signed with the Packers.

Bowen was stuck behind the terrific threesome of safeties Marques Anderson, Antuan Edwards and Darren Sharper. But injuries to Green Bay's secondary enabled Bowen to start six games, and he finished the season with 42 tackles.

In Green Bay's playoff loss to Atlanta last season, Bowen collected 15 tackles against Michael Vick's Falcons while knocking down two passes. The performance caught the attention of the Redskins, who released safety Sam Shade to upgrade the safety position.

Bowen has come this far because of a blue-collar work ethic, but the Redskins coaches didn't realize Bowen's passion until seeing it firsthand. Despite his big raise, Bowen has kept the mentality of a low draft pick. ("He's one of those guys," Catavolos said, "who lives and breathes football 24 hours a day.") Bowen is almost always one of the last players to leave Redskins Park. On Tuesday, in addition to his writing gig, Bowen religiously visits the training facility to study film. During meetings for defensive backs, Bowen is known for asking detailed questions about the game plan. "He keeps you on your toes as a coach," Catavolos said. "You can say he's like an investigative reporter."

An instinctive and aggressive safety, Bowen isn't spectacular in any area but is solid in just about every facet, with a nice blend of savvy, size and speed (4.4 in the 40-yard dash). If there is any flaw, it's Bowen's one-on-one defense. "He really doesn't have any weaknesses," said cornerback Champ Bailey. "He's got good speed. He's got good range. And he can hit."

Bowen gave up being a quarterback at Iowa largely for the opportunity to deliver big hits. During one practice in his freshman season, a linebacker -- who Bowen described as "a big Italian guy from New Jersey" -- tackled Bowen harder than he had ever been hit. Besides making Bowen's eyes watery, the blow caused him to realize the psychological impact of a tornado-like tackle. By the next season, Bowen changed to a position whose duties included punishing tackles. But Bowen doesn't consider a hit satisfying unless the ball is dislodged for an incompletion or fumble. "Being a hard-hitter is great," said Bowen, "but what you want to be defined as is an all-around defensive back."

Bowen didn't receive much attention during an offseason in which one-third of the Redskins' roster changed. The relative anonymity ended on July 30 when Bowen delivered the tackle heard 'round the NFL. During an intrasquad scrimmage at Redskins Park, Bowen rammed tailback Trung Canidate's left shoulder, sending him flying several yards before he landed on his back. Bowen's tackle, which drew a rebuke from Coach Steve Spurrier, was replayed endlessly on highlight shows.

Then on Sept. 8, Smoot was briefly knocked unconscious after colliding with Bowen during a seven-on-seven drill. (Smoot and Bowen had been defending a pass.) Smoot was rushed to a nearby hospital to be examined.

"He gave me a concussion," said Smoot, laughing heartily. "He hits everybody. He hits the people on our team. He hits the people on the other team. You have to have that in the defensive backfield to strike fear in a receiver's heart coming across the middle."

Bowen's hits have been so hard that he has almost knocked himself out. In the first quarter of Washington's 27-20 victory over the Seattle Seahawks on Nov. 9, Bowen's tackle near the goal line, forced the safety out with a concussion. In last Sunday's 20-17 loss to the Carolina Panthers, Bowen went down briefly after slamming into wideout Steve Smith following a 30-yard catch.

"He's a violent guy; he's crazy," said Ohalete, smiling. "He likes to go in there and throw his body around and knock people out, which is good, because I'm the finesse safety on this team."

Later, Bowen nodded his bald head, conceding that his football persona didn't mesh with his contemplative side.

"When you cross the white line, a lot of people change," said Bowen. "It's a violent league and you have to be a violent, aggressive person to survive. The person I am is different and pretty creative."

Then the aspiring writer added a final twist: "And actually pretty shy."

© 2003 The Washington Post Company