Manny Bowen again off Penn State football team, apparently this time for good
The senior linebacker had been suspended twice by head coach James Franklin, including the final four games of last season.
The on-again, off-again Penn State football career of senior linebacker Manny Bowen appeared to be off for good Monday after the Nittany Lions announced that he was no longer with the team.
"Manny Bowen is no longer on the Penn State football team," said a statement from Penn State athletics. "We wish him all the best."
Bowen, who started 21 games in the last two seasons for the Nittany Lions, had been suspended twice by head coach James Franklin — first for the Rose Bowl at the end of the 2016 season because of an academic issue, and then for the final four games of last season for an unspecified violation of team rules.
Franklin said on Aug. 4 that Bowen had been reinstated to the team and added that "we didn't make it easy on him" to return. He also said that the plan was to give Bowen "the best opportunity in December to graduate from Penn State," but that he had no idea what the player's role would be.
But that all changed on Monday, five days before the Nittany Lions' season opener against Appalachian State at Beaver Stadium.
Bowen, of Barnegat, N.J., finished fifth on the Lions in tackles in both the 2016 and 2017 seasons.