Ken Bowman

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Bowman was born on December 15, 1942, in Milan, Illinois. He graduated from Rock Island High School and attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he played college football for the Wisconsin Badgers. In 1962, the Badgers were Big Ten Conference champions and played USC in the Rose Bowl. The Packers selected him in the eighth round of the 1964 NFL draft. He succeeded Hall of Famer Jim Ringo at center as a rookie. In 1967, he was the center during the winning play of the Ice Bowl, in which Bart Starr scored on a quarterback sneak; Bowman and Jerry Kramer executed a wedge block on Jethro Pugh. After his rookie season, he attended law school part-time and earned a Juris Doctor from the University of Wisconsin Law School in 1972. During the 1974 players' strike, he was the NFL players' union representative for the Packers, was arrested while picketing, and was placed on injured reserve with a phantom back injury, sitting out the 1974 season. He ended his 11-year professional career in 1975 with The Hawaiians of the World Football League, which folded on October 22. He was inducted into the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame in 1981.

In Their Own Story

The wind howled across the frozen tundra of Lambeau Field, carrying with it the biting chill of December 1967. Ken Bowman stood at the line of scrimmage, his breath forming clouds in the frigid air as he surveyed the Dallas defense. The ground was hard as iron, and his gloves felt stiff against the cold, but his mind remained razor-sharp. He locked eyes with Bart Starr, giving a subtle nod that signaled the protection scheme they had drilled thousands of times in the practice fields, now tested under the weight of history.

Reader's Guide

Bowman was one of fifteen plaintiffs in Mackey v. National Football League, in which Judge Earl R. Larson declared the Rozelle rule a violation of antitrust laws on December 30, 1975. He returned to Wisconsin in 1975 and practiced law. He and his wife moved to Arizona in 1994, and in semi-retirement he served as a special magistrate for the City of Tucson, Town of Oro Valley, and Town of Marana. He also served on the Board of Regents of Concordia University Wisconsin. He died at home in Oro Valley, Arizona, on December 27, 2023, at age 81.

Did You Know?

• Bowman was selected in the eighth round of the 1964 NFL draft, not the first round.
• He earned a Juris Doctor from the University of Wisconsin Law School in 1972 while playing for the Packers.
• He was arrested during the 1974 players' strike while picketing a preseason scrimmage.
• He played for The Hawaiians of the World Football League in 1975 before the league folded.