Central Michigan University Athletics
Tony Bowne Profile
1/5/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 5, 2004
By Fred Stabley Jr.
Sports Information Director
Tony Bowne is one of the most highly recruited student-athletes ever to attend Central Michigan University.
The product of Hastings High turned down offers from Michigan, Michigan State, Vanderbilt and Texas A & M - to play football.
"I loved playing football but I felt I might be all beat up when I was done," Bowne said. "I always wonder what might have happened had I stuck with football. All of the schools wanted me to play quarterback except Michigan State which wanted me to get to 245 pounds and be an outside linebacker."
An injury during his senior season helped make up his mind.
"I rolled out to pass and just as I opened up to throw the ball, I got a helmet in my back," Bowne recalled. "The blow dislocated and broke five ribs in my sternum."
Hastings, 6-0 at the time, lost two of its last three games but still made the playoffs. "I kept on playing but I was tentative in running and throwing," he recalled. "It hurt every time I got hit."
Bowne, who averaged more than 100 yards rushing and 100 yards passing prior to the injury, was honorable mention all-state in football as a junior and first team all-state as a senior.
However, the 6-3, 225-pounder was also an outstanding basketball player, earning first team all-state laurels as a junior and senior.
He chose CMU from a group of schools that included Western Michigan, Eastern Michigan, Bradley and San Diego State.
Bowne was redshirted in his freshman season after a talk with Chippewa mentor Jay Smith. "He told me I might get seven to 10 minutes a game as a true freshman," Bowne said. "It was frustrating not being able to play but it will be beneficial in the long run."
The Chippewas won the MAC title in Bowne's redshirt season but staggered to a 9-19 mark the first year he played.
That all turned around a year ago when CMU won the MAC title again and defeated Creighton in the opening round of the NCAA tournament.
"It was such an awesome year," Bowne said. "We had the talent the previous year but we weren't on the same page. It was incredible playing against Creighton and then Duke in the NCAA tourney. It was an experience I'll never forget."
While the Chippewas have struggled in the early going this season, Bowne is confident it will turn around.
"Last year, we had so many veterans and few newcomers," Bowne said. "This year, it's the opposite. We have so many new players and it will take time for them to feel comfortable.
"We definitely have some talent on this team and I think we can play with anybody in the MAC. The key is playing for a full 40 minutes, and that's tough for a young team."
Bowne likes his new roles as one of the "veterans" and a team leader.
"I've always been a leader," he said. "I'm talkative and I like working with the young guys."
An accounting major with a finance minor, Bowne has designs on going to law school and eventually becoming a sports agent. He'll graduate this summer but will work on a master's degree next year while finishing his basketball eligibility as a fifth-year senior.