UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Linebacker Manny Bowen hasn't suited up for the past two games due to a violation of team rules and he won't play this weekend either in the regular season finale, James Franklin said Tuesday.
Bowen, who was also suspended for last year's Rose Bowl game, was replaced in the starting lineup at Will linebacker by senior Brandon Smith the past two weeks. It's unclear if Bowen will be available for the bowl game.
Also, wide receiver Irv Charles, who Franklin said was "not available" last week, will be a game-time decision for the Lions' regular season finale in College Park against Maryland. Charles has been a prominent special teams player this season.
The Lions will also be without starting safety Troy Apke for the first half on Saturday after he was ejected for targeting in the fourth quarter of the Nebraska game. While that potentially creates three spots -- two with starters on defense and another as a key special teamer could could miss another game -- the Lions have other options already in place.
"That's a big one," safety Marcus Allen said Tuesday of losing Apke for the first half. "That hurt me a little bit, just to see Troy not be able to play the first half of next game because, you know, he's a senior. ... That's just going to make me go even harder for my boy. That's my road dog right there. I'm going to play my heart out for him. That's all I can do."
The Lions could use Nick Scott or Ayron Monroe as the starter opposite Allen. Both have played this year and will have to combine to get the defense through the first half.
As for Bowen's void at linebacker, Smith has started alongside linebackers Jason Cabinda and Koa Farmer that last two weeks and sophomore linebacker Cam Brown began practicing at the Sam and the Will spots ahead of the Rutgers game, Brown said on Tuesday. With Penn State wanting to get Brown, one of the linebackers of the future, more reps, look for Brown, a Maryland native, to continue working at both spots.
"Cam Brown is a guy that's got a very, very bright future," Franklin said. "Strong, athletic, long obviously, has played a good amount of football over the last two years. He's still got a lot of room for growth and development as well. But we're excited about him."
Gaining experience on both sides with more blitzing at the Sam spot and being in the box more at the Will linebacker spot is something Brown has embraced. Just one year ago he was thrust onto the field and within the past 12 months he said he's gained confidence. Having a chance to play back home in front of countless family members and friends -- at the place where Brown didn't pick up a scholarship offer for until D.J. Durkin and staff took over late in the process -- will all be part of Saturday's game.
"Having more space at the Sam is a little bit harder than what I'm used to at the Will position," Brown said, adding that he repped both spots during camp, but never practiced there during a game week until Rutgers week. That of course coincides with when Bowen's suspension began.
Brown said he embraced the chance to play and practice at both spots when defensive coordinator Brent Pry approached him about it.
"I like being in space, I like blitzing so it was an opportunity I was open to take," Brown said. "You never turn down an opportunity."
However, backing up at both spots does come with some noticeable challenges. In fact, Franklin made the argument Tuesday that the Lions' defense at many points is more of a 4-2-5 than the tradition 4-3. With safety turned linebacker Koa Farmer starting at Sam, having someone with Brown's size and athleticism out there could present some challenges to opposing offenses in the years ahead. Seeing more of Brown in all likelihood is the direction this defense takes with Cabinda and Smith both having just two games left in their collegiate careers.
"I think sometimes when people look at our numbers or our linebacker situation, we basically play with two linebackers, then the third guy is really a hybrid," Franklin said. "He's always going to be a hybrid, whether it's a safety, whether it's a corner. When we were at Vanderbilt, the guy that played that position was a converted corner, from corner to safety, from safety to linebacker, and played well. ... I think that's a little bit of something that maybe people don't completely understand, is really we're a 4-2-5 defense in a lot of ways."