Upon further consideration, Aaron Bowen has decided not to make the 1,148-mile commute to Milwaukee.
It was confirmed Thursday that Bowen, a Jacksonville, Fla. native and the first recruit to verbally commit to MU’s 2010 recruiting class, will re-open his recruiting.
A consensus Top-150 recruit—including the 29th and 37th-ranked small forward by Rivals.com and ESPNU.com, respectively—the 6’5”, 180-pound Bowen verbally committed to Buzz Williams and MU at the start of his junior season at Wolfson (Fla.) High School on Nov. 20, 2008.
Bowen, who had also drawn considerable interest from Florida, Florida State, Jacksonville, Kansas State, Miami and Virginia Tech, among others, decided on the Golden Eagles after a sensational sophomore season which saw him average 17.1 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game.
Speculation about a potential shift in Bowen’s mindset, however, emerged in the spring when Marquette assistant coach Dale Layer accepted the head coaching position at Liberty University. The former head coach at Colorado St. University (2000-07) who spent one season on the Golden Eagles bench (2008-09), Layer assumed the lead role in the recruitment of Bowen.
“It’s not that the coaching staff did anything wrong; it’s just that Coach Layer did everything right,” said Wolfson High School head basketball coach, Bruce Rosebrock, as reported by Todd Rosiak of jsonline.com. “And when [Layer] wasn’t there, it left a hole with Aaron. There was something missing. Coach Layer was special to Aaron, and they had built a relationship.”
Bowen’s decision is somewhat surprising, based on the comments of Bowen’s father, Tony, in early May regarding his son’s collegiate future. “When [Coach Layer accepted the position at Liberty], Aaron was unsure because his main communication was through him,” said Bowen, as reported by jsonline.com on May 3.
Tony Bowen continued by stating: “Aaron is 100 percent committed to Marquette—make no mistake about that. I was telling Aaron, ‘This is one of the biggest decisions you’ll be making in your life. You have to take these things seriously, make sure you do your research. And once you make a decision, as a man you want to stand by it.’ Our hearts are set on Marquette.”
In anticipation of Bowen’s de-commitment, according to jsonline.com, Rosebrock had been contacted by Alabama, Florida, Florida State, Miami and Virginia Tech proactively to get a jump on the re-recruitment of the 12th-ranked player in Florida (Class of 2010), according to Hoop Scoop.
Coming off a junior campaign that saw the wiry forward average 15.8 points, 6.5 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game while leading the Wolfpack to a 26-4 record and a Jacksonville city championship, Bowen will undoubtedly have many suitors lining up at his door for his services.
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