Roger Bowling of Union County High School in Liberty, Ind., is the winner of the first IBCA Assistant Coach of the Year award. Bowling has served as a boys’ basketball assistant for the Patriots for 24 years. He was nominated for this award by Union County head coach Jesse Moses.
“Coach Roger Bowling is the man I want to be when I grow up,” Moses wrote in his nomination. “He is supportive, instructive, full of life and full of gratitude. The amount of joy he brings our players on daily basis and the amount of love he gives to our teams is unrivaled. As a person, he brings a joy to the gym.
“There are people we come across in life that by their presence make us better. Roger is one of these individuals. Former players reach out to him frequently, and he is always willing to lend a hand. He often sends messages of support and our players know that he truly loves them. We are a family here at Union County. Coach Bowling is our dad, our crazy uncle and supportive grandpa all in one.”
Bowling – a 1978 Union County graduate who has been a volunteer coach at his alma mater for 22 of his 24 seasons on the bench – assists the program in ways beyond Xs and Os. He annually coordinates the Union County “Coaches vs. Cancer” game, volunteers for multiple school functions and fundraisers, and helps young men become successful adults.
“Coach Bowling unfortunately dealt with a bout of cancer a few years back (in 2011-12),” Moses noted. “Even that could not slow him down. His strength through his toughest times served and still serves as an example for all of us. Our school is lucky to have Coach Bowling. His passion and perseverance has enriched the UC basketball program and the entire community around him.”
Former Union County head coach Mark Detweiler, now head coach at Delta, said Bowling is a key contributor to the Patriots’ program. Bowling has assisted UC coaches Greg Hall, Todd Howard, Barry Kennedy, Detweiler and Moses.
“In my time there, Roger would come into practice every day (some days without going to bed) and assisted on the bench every game,” Detweiler wrote, noting Bowling’s third-shift full-time job. “He continues to serve in this capacity. There are very few assistant coaches in the state of Indiana that have served in a volunteer capacity for (nearly) 25 years. He truly loves his school and community, and cares deeply about the players in the program.
“Without his dedication, the Union County program would not have won three sectional titles in the past seven seasons. … He represents what we all hope to be in terms of giving to area youth, without asking for anything in return.”
More testimony for Bowling’s role came from Mike Murray.
“Roger Bowling has affected the lives of many athletes by always encouraging them to be the best person they can be first and then be the best player that they can be secondly,” Murray wrote. “Roger takes it upon himself to take many pictures during the season. He then compiles a video and presents this to the seniors after they have completed their high school basketball career. This has been very meaningful to many of the student athletes.”
After Bowling graduated from Union County, he moved to Oklahoma for several years. He then returned to Liberty, where he worked for 12 years as a police officer. He now works as a manufacturing supervisor at Hill-Rom in Batesville. He also currently serves on the Town Council of Liberty.
Bowling and his wife, Amy, have an adult daughter – Kate.
