Trending
LEWISTOWN – In his later years, Bob Bowman always had a smile on his face a mile wide when he was at a sporting event or talking to young people.
His passion was two-fold – coaching and educating. He was excellent at both.
Bowman died Monday at the age of 89. He leaves behind, like Joe Shirk and John Monsell before him, a legacy in both teaching and football in the area that will live through the passage of time.
A graduate of Sayre High School and a World War II veteran, Bowman graduated from Mansfield with a bachelor’s degree in education in 1949 and a master’s in counseling from Bucknell in 1952.
He was principal at Kishacoquillas and supervisor of guidance counseling for the Mifflin County school district until his retirement in 1985. He spent 36 years in the field of education.
On the gridiron, Bowman coached at Canton and Coatesville, where he won a Ches-Mont League title in 1964, before becoming the head coach of Lewistown in the fall of 1973 after the breakup of Penn Highlands.
He was from an era where the foundational principle of coaching was tough love with a superior work ethic. Chip Yoder, who played running back for Bowman in 1973-74, remembers it quite well.
“Coach was very tough, at least we thought at the time. He was hard-nosed but we loved him. He worked us hard and believed in the fundamentals and of course conditioning,” Yoder said. “We used to get the Gatorade break in practice, after he ran the crap out of us, and you could tell he didn’t like it. He would always say water makes you weak. I got to know him and he became more of a friend and a mentor to me. He would just give you that smile and give you advice. He was a true gentleman.”
At Lewistown, Bowman compiled a four-year mark of 17-23-1 with back-to-back 7-3 seasons in 1974-75. His 1974 team won the Big Eight championship, while the 1975 squad came in second to Huntingdon.
“We had a real good team in 1974. They had some injuries in ’75 or they could have been even better,” Yoder said. “He coached the last winning season in Lewistown history. People have the perception he didn’t win many football games, but he actually was a very good coach. He wasn’t a part of all the losing that followed and unfortunately, he gets lumped into that.”
Bowman coached 11 Big Eight first-team all-stars and in 1974, Dave “Jappy” Stevenson made the United Press International all-state first team at middle guard.
One of those all-stars was punter/defensive back Tim Tyson, who played under Bowman from 1975-76.
“He was a great coach. In my mind, he is a legend like (Joe Paterno). He taught me so many things about life. He was a great man. He taught us how to play the game and never give up when something is important to you,” Tyson said. “He believed in family and he brought us all together as one unit. He taught us all not just about the game of football but the game of life, how to be a man and live a great life. He was a great man and Lewistown has lost a true legend.”
Despite an easygoing manner, Bowman could get his dander up during a game or practice if the situation called for it.
“He could be a little bit of both. You knew when he was mad and when he liked to have fun, but he treated us all as family. He was like a second dad to me,” Tyson said.
Excellent coaches strive to bring out the best in their athletes. To mold them into adults with polished character, a strong work ethic and the skills needed to push the limits of what they believe is possible. Great coaches not only teach X’s and O’s, they teach how to win at the game of life.
“When I went away to college to play ball, what stuck with me is the fundamentals – blocking tackling and work ethic,” Yoder said. “Coach used to say if you outwork everyone things will be good in the end. He was right.”
Robert William Bowman was that kind of coach and he did it all with a smile on his face.