Notre Dame LB commit Drayk Bowen earns major honors
Merrillville (Ind.) Andrean class of 2023 linebacker and Notre Dame commit Drayk Bowen was an absolute force this fall, and he received major honors on Tuesday.
MaxPreps named Bowen its 2022 Indiana High School Football Player of the Year.
He performed at a high level on both sides of the ball this fall, recording 144 total stops, 19 tackles for loss, 5 sacks, 2 interceptions, 5 passes broken up, 3 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery and 1 blocked punt. Offensively, he had 242 carries for 1,784 yards and 26 touchdowns, plus 10 receptions for 228 yards and 3 scores.
Bowen’s high school career was nothing short of sensational. In 55 career games, he recorded 379 tackles (54 for loss), 16 sacks, 6 interceptions, 6 passes broken up, 6 fumble recoveries, 10 forced fumbles, 4 blocked punts and 3 blocked field goals. He also added a fumble recovery score and 2 interceptions returned for touchdowns across his career.
He didn’t play much offensively as a freshman and sophomore but did his final two seasons at the prep level. He ran 424 times for 2,969 yards with 49 touchdowns. He also caught 34 passes for 494 yards and 7 touchdowns.
He also amassed 379 tackles and 59 total touchdowns. Oh, and he also was his team’s punter for the past three seasons.
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Bowen led Andrean to an Indiana Class 2A state championship victory in 2021. In the finals win over Evansville (Ind.) Mater Dei, Bowen ran 24 times for 171 yards and 3 touchdowns. He also notched 6 tackles (3 for loss) and a sack.
Bowen had the game of his life in a semifinal matchup against Fort Wayne (Ind.) Bishop Luers on Nov. 18, 2022, totaling 12 tackles (6 for loss) and 2 sacks, plus 34 rushing attempts for 358 yards and 5 touchdowns.
Andrean fell in the 2A championship game this past Friday in a rematch against Mater Dei.
Bowen is a semifinalist for the high school Butkus Award, which goes to the best linebacker recruit in the country. Many (La.) High’s Tackett Curtis (USC), Denton (Texas) Ryan’s Anthony Hill and Tallahassee (Fla.) Lincoln’s Raylen Wilson (Georgia) are the other finalists.
The 6-1½, 233-pounder is expected to play baseball at Notre Dame as well.
Bowen, who will play in the All-American Bowl in January, is the nation’s No. 86 overall player and No. 7 linebacker according to the 2023 On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He’s also the top player from the state of Indiana.
