Notre Dame LB Drayk Bowen Turning Injury Into Edge Ahead of 2026 Season

Drayk Bowen isn’t taking the field this sprin, but he’s still finding ways to elevate his game.

The 2025 captain is taking in practice from the sideline as he recovers from offseason surgery to correct a torn labrum (hip) and another procedure that involved shaving his bone down. 

“I figured out I needed it after the Pitt game and just finished the season,” Bowen stated. “They said I could play with it. I underwent surgery early January. It was a torn labrum. Just some bands around the labrum to keep it together. I had a bone impingement that they just had to go in and shave down.” 

It’s a lengthy recovery process, but Bowen believes he’s ahead of schedule, which bodes well for having an unrestricted summer. 

“They said the normal recovery process is 4-6 months,” said Bowen. “For me, it's maybe a little quicker, but our timeline has been early June to make sure I'm full go. That was kind of the plan. Any earlier than that is just kind of a gift.” 

With his physical reps on hold, Bowen has leaned heavily into the mental side. Bowen has spent hours in the film room with new linebackers coach Brian Jean-Mary.

“It’s a lot of watching film and figuring out what our offense is trying to do to us,” explained Bowen. “Sitting up in Coach BJ's office watching games from last year, seeing what their splits are, what they're trying to do, what certain formations are going to be.” 

Bowen has also expanded his film study and learning process to the offensive staff, which shouldn’t be a surprise, as he learned the finer points of film study from JD Bertrand. 

“I’m even meeting with the offense coaches,” Bowen said. “Coach (Ja’Juan) Seider, a little bit, trying to figure out what running backs are looking at, what they're trying to do versus certain fronts, certain defenses and trying to figure out where I can be better as a linebacker there.” 

After emerging as one of the nation’s top Mike linebackers under Max Bullough, Bowen is now expanding his toolbox under Jean-Mary’s fresh eyes. 

That process starts with seeing the field from a different perspective, which is part of the reason Bowen has taken it on himself to meet with the offensive staff. 

“He's been coaching a long time, so he's seen a lot of different things,” Bowen stated. “That's one of the biggest things that he's helped me with, understanding where to go, what I can do in certain fits, what formation offense is showing, how is that going to affect past games. Just being able to talk with him and sit in the film room with him and ask questions and tell me different things that he's seen over the years has been a huge part of this offseason.” 

Jean-Mary has coached high-level linebackers throughout his years, so he knows what great backers look like. 

And while he hasn’t seen Bowen play live, Jean-Mary already can feel his impact.

“The best things that happen with any group is when you have an established leader in the room and a guy that's been here for a long time and has been through so many different ups and downs,” Jean-Mary explained. “It helps the whole process because you can lean on him because if anything is off, he's the guy who could kind of get it back on the right track.

“It's always a blessing to have someone like Drayk, not just a leader in the room, but a team leader. That makes a big difference.”

The Indiana native might not be on the field, but Bowen has made sure to lead this offseason. Bowen isn’t ready to give up his captain role, and perhaps more importantly, he hasn’t forgotten the pain of last December. 

“Last year we left it in the hands of a committee, and obviously it didn’t our favor,” Bowen said. “Coach Freeman said leave no doubt and make sure that we're pushing ourselves. He's out here more with the team and makes sure that he's pushing the team to be better and to make sure that we're not going to leave it in the hands of anyone else.” 

The leave no doubt mindset has been instilled into the entire program, and for Bowen, the meaning is simple. 

“I don't want to ever leave it in the hands of somebody else,” explained Bowen. “I'm going to make sure that this team is ready and that we're working as hard as we can to make sure that there's not a one on a loss (column). There's going to be nobody else that can take it away from us and there's no reason that they can't put us where we want to go.” 

In 2025, Notre Dame got off to a rocky start on defense, but by the end of the year, the Irish were one of the best units in the nation. 

The goal for 2026 is to start fast as defensive coordinator Chris Ash returns and there is great familiarity between the players on the field. 

Bowen expects the defense to set the tone and it starts with trust. 

“Everybody kind of knows what they're supposed to be doing,” stated Bowen. “I’ve played with the Adon (Shuler) for four years. Boubacar (Traore) for four years. Those dudes who have been here and know the defense. You kind of know each other and you trust each other. It's something where we can all help the defense.

“It's just going to help us play a lot cleaner, a lot more aggressive.” 

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