Twitter: @calfootball
Instagram: bowbow_iii | cal_football
Bowers' Career Game Highs
Rushes: 9 (at Washington, 2017)
Rushing Yards: 11 (twice, last vs. Arizona, 2017)
Rushing TDs: 1 (three times, last at UCLA, 2017)
Long Rush: 14 (at UCLA, 2017)
Pass Completions: 29 (twice, last at Colorado, 2017)
Pass Attempts: 52 (at Colorado, 2017)
Passing Yards: 363 (at North Carolina, 2017)
Passing TDs: 4 (at North Carolina, 2017)
Long Pass: 75TD (at Oregon, 2017)
Interceptions: 4 (vs. USC, 2017)
Quarterback Rating: 174.52 (vs. Oregon State, 2017)
Total Offense Yards: 367 (at North Carolina, 2017)
All-Purpose Yards: 11 (twice, last vs. Arizona, 2017)
Punts: 1 (twice, last vs. Washington State, 2017)
Punting Yards: 39 (vs. Washington State, 2017)
Punting Average: 39.0 (vs. Washington State, 2017)
Long Punt: 39 (vs. Washington State, 2017)
Two-Point Conversion Rushes: 1 (at Stanford, 2017)
Points Responsible For: 24 (at North Carolina, 2017)
Tackles: 2 (vs. USC, 2017)
Cal Career (2014 – Present)
• Has started 13 of the 14 games he has played in and posted a 6-7 record as Cal's starting quarterback while completing 280-of 478 passes (58.6%) for 3095 yards with 18 touchdowns and 12 interceptions for a 120.37 quarterback rating
• Posted career highs in every passing category as a 2017 sophomore when he completed 272-of 461 passes (59.0%) for 3039 yards with 18 touchdowns and 12 interceptions for a 122.06 quarterback rating
• Has a pair of career rushing touchdowns with a career-high-tying one each as a sophomore against Washington State and Arizona among 64 career rushes for a loss of 147 yards
• Led the Golden Bears to a 35-30 victory at North Carolina in the season-opener of his sophomore campaign and his first game as the team's starting quarterback when he posted career highs of 363 yards passing and four touchdown throws
• Registered a career-high-tying 29 pass completions in back-to-back games against Arizona and at Colorado as a sophomore, while also throwing the football a career-high 52 times against the Buffaloes and equaling a career-best with 11 rushing yards vs. the Wildcats that he also accomplished against Ole Miss
• Had a career-high 174.52 quarterback rating and completed a career-best 80.0 percent of his passes (24-of-30) against Oregon State as a sophomore
• Had a career-high four interceptions as a sophomore vs. USC
• Credited with a career-high-tying nine carries in back-to-back games at Oregon and Washington as a sophomore
• Had the longest completion of his career for 75 yards to Kanawai Noa at Oregon while his longest career rush is 14 yards in the season finale at UCLA, both as a sophomore
• Has punted three times for 87 yards and an average of 29.0 yards per punt all as a sophomore including a career-long punt of 39 yards vs. Washington State
• Had the lone two tackles of his career as a sophomore against USC
Junior (2018)
• Started his 13th consecutive game at quarterback in the season-opener against North Carolina and completed 8-of-17 passes for 56 yards and lost seven yards in six rushes but has not played since the first half of the game against the Tar Heels
• On the watch list for the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award honoring the nation's top quarterback
• The Pac-12's leading returner from 2017 in passing yards per game (253.3 ypg) and completions per game (22.67 cpg) while ranking second in passing yards (3039) and third in passing TDs (2018)
• Completed 6-of-11 passes for 66 yards including a 16-yard touchdown pass to Jordan Duncan in the spring game that was the contest's lone touchdown throw while also being credited with a loss of 16 yards on three rushes
Sophomore (2017)
• Completed 272-of-461 passes (59.0%) for 3039 yards with 18 touchdowns and 12 interceptions for a 122.06 quarterback rating
• Became the seventh quarterback in Cal history to throw for over 3000 yards and recorded the sixth-highest total in school history with 3039 passing yards while ranking among Pac-12 and national leaders in completions per game (22.67 cpg, 3rd Pac-12, 15th NCAA), passing yards per game (253.3 ypg, 4th Pac-12, 28th NCAA), passing yards (5th Pac-12, 33rd NCAA) and passing TDs (18, T6th Pac-12, T44th NCAA)
• Had a string of 116 consecutive passes without an interception that spanned three complete games and portions of two others from the fourth quarter against USC into the first quarter against Arizona
• Added a pair of rushing touchdowns on 60 carries for a loss of 142 yards
• Had three punts for 87 yards and an average of 29.0 yards per punt
• Had a career-high two tackles both coming against USC
• Had a career-high 174.52 quarterback rating and completed a career-best 80.0 percent (24-of-30) of his passes against Oregon State
• Led the Golden Bears to a 35-30 victory at North Carolina in the season opener when he earned a Manning Star of the Week and a spot on the Davey O'Brien "Great 8" list by completing 24-of-38 passes for a career-high 363 yards with a career-high four touchdown throws and two interceptions for a 167.61 quarterback rating, while adding a critical 11-yard run for a first down on a third-down play to keep a key fourth-quarter drive going against the Tar Heels
• Completed a career-high-tying 29 passes in a career-high 52 attempts while throwing for 359 yards and three touchdowns with one interception at Colorado
• Completed 22-of-50 passes for 303 yards with one touchdown and a career-high four interceptions against USC, while adding three rushes for a loss of 20 yards
• Completed a career-high-tying 29-of-49 passes for 301 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions while adding five rushes for a career-high-tying 11 yards and his second career rushing score against Arizona on an 11-yard TD run
• Completed 21-of-38 passes for 259 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions against Washington State while adding his first career touchdown run on a seven-yarder that ended with a full flip into the end zone that was the Opus Bank #12Best Moment of the Year by Pac-12 Network and SportsCenter's Top 10 Play of the Day among three rushes for a loss of nine yards
• Completed 23-of-41 passes for 255 yards at Oregon including a 75-yard touchdown pass to Kanawai Noa that was Cal's longest play of the season with three touchdowns and no interceptions but was sacked seven times among a career-high-tying nine rushes for a loss of 32 yards
• Completed 25-of-41 passes for 242 yards at UCLA with one touchdown and no interceptions while adding four rushes for 19 yards and one touchdown on the ground as well as a career-long 14-yard run
• Completed 24-of-47 passes for 236 yards with one touchdown pass and two interceptions in a 27-16 win over Ole Miss while adding four rushes for a career-high-tying 11 yards
• Completed 20-of-28 passes for 200 yards without a touchdown or interception in a 33-20 win over Weber State
• Completed 20-of-29 passes for 182 yards at Stanford with no touchdowns and one interception
• Completed 11-of-18 passes for 80 yards at Washington while he was credited with a career-high-tying nine rushes for a loss of 41 yards when he was sacked on eight occasions
• Emerged as the starting quarterback after a four-way battle for the position with Chase Forrest, Chase Garbers and Brandon McIlwain throughout most of training camp after sharing No. 1 reps with Forrest throughout spring ball
• Completed 18-of-29 passes for 168 yards and three touchdowns in the spring game, hooking up with Jordan Duncan (12 yards), Justin Norbeck (eight yards) and Ray Hudson (1 yard) for scoring strikes
• Also credited with three rushes for 10 yards in the spring game
Freshman (2016)
• Saw his first collegiate action in a win over UCLA in the season finale when he entered the game on Cal's final drive and rushed once for two yards but did not attempt a pass
• Threw the game-winning pass on a 24-yard strike to Brandon Singleton on the final play of the spring game and finished 11-of-21 for 152 yards with two touchdowns and one interception in the Blue team's 38-37 victory over the Gold squad with his other touchdown throw coming on a 16-yard completion to Jordan Duncan
• Also credited with three rushes for a loss of four yards in the spring game
Freshman (2015)
• Redshirted
• Did not play
• One of four players and two freshmen along with fellow freshman Lonny Powell and junior college transfers Derron Brown and DeVante Wilson who were mid-year enrollees in January and participated with the team during its spring practices
• Completed 1-of-4 passes for four yards in the spring game, while adding one rush for minus four yards
Bothell HS (Class of 2015)
• A four-year varsity player who took over as a full-time starter as a 2012 sophomore after sharing the starting job as a 2011 true freshman
• Invited to the 2014 National Underclassman Senior All-American Bowl following his final prep campaign
• Led his team to its first ever Washington 4A state title as well as a KingCo District crown with a 14-0 overall regular-season record and an 8-0 District mark as a senior with the squad on top of the state’s rankings and 59th nationally
• Senior team was honored by the 10th Annual MaxPreps Football Tour of Champions as one of the 50 best football teams in the country (out of more than 17,000 schools)
• Team lost its lone game as a senior against Central from Miami its final game of the campaign in December at the first annual Burger King State Champions Bowl Series televised on ESPNU from FAU Stadium in Boca Raton, Fla.
• Produced one of the most viewed football plays ever in the state championship game when he landed on his feet in the end zone after a full flip over a defender to cap a four-yard touchdown run, with the play having been viewed by millions worldwide and ending up as the No. 3 Play of the Year by MaxPreps after picking up multiple Play of the Week mentions
• Completed 228-of-335 passes (68.1%) for 3,505 yards with 37 touchdowns and seven interceptions as a senior to earn first-team Associated Press Washington All-State and All-KingCo honors
• Completed 20-of-41 passes for 277 yards in the Burger King Bowl Series loss to Miami Central as a senior
• Completed 17-of-19 passes for 216 yards and one touchdown in the state finals as a senior to knock off defending champion Chiawana as a senior
• Also posted strong performances as a senior in playoff games in the first round vs. Eastlake (18-30, 244 yards, 4 TD), second round vs. Bellarmine (21-29, 305 yards, 1 TD) and state semifinals vs. Newport (12-15, 172 yards, 3 TD)
• Wore No. 20 in his final four games as a senior in tribute to injured teammate Sam McPherson, who suffered a season-ending injury in the team’s final regular-season game and missed the entire postseason
• Top regular-season performance as a senior came when he completed 18-of-19 passes for 333 yards and threw for a career-high five touchdowns as his school defeated Skyline for the first time since 2009 to clinch the KingCo 4A title
• Threw for three or more touchdown passes seven times as a senior, adding four scoring tosses against Newport and three each vs. Eastlake, Redmond and Woodinville in the regular season
• Passed for 2,097 yards and 25 touchdowns as a 2013 junior for a team that finished the season ranked fifth in the state, reached the 4A state quarterfinals and won a 4A KingCo Crest Division title with a 4-0 mark, registering a 9-3 overall record that included a win over a Coeur d’Alene High School squad that was the top-ranked team in Idaho when he threw for four touchdowns including the game-winning TD pass of 39 yards late in the fourth quarter
• Team posted a 6-5 overall record and was 4-0 in district play to win the KingCo Crest District title during his sophomore season before falling in the first round of the WIAA state playoffs in his first season as the full-time starting quarterback
• A part-time starter as a freshman for a team that finished 6-4 overall and was 4-1 in KingCo Crown District action
• Also a member of his school’s basketball team and 3.0 Club
Recruiting Notes (Class of 2015)
• Stars: ESPN (4), Tom Lemming (3 Plus), 247Sports (3), 247Sports Composite (3), Rivals (3), Scout (3)
• National Overall Player Ratings: 247Sports Composite (502)
• National Quarterback Ratings (Pocket Passer): ESPN (13)
• National Quarterback Ratings (Pro-Style): Rivals (17), 247Sports (18), 247Sports Composite (21)
• National Quarterback Ratings: Scout (61)
• Regional Overall Player Ratings: ESPN (52)
• West Quarterback Ratings: Scout (16)
• Washington Overall Player Ratings: ESPN (2), Rivals (5), Scout (9), 247Sports (9), 247Sports Composite (10)
• Washington Quarterback Ratings: Scout (2)
• Ratings/Scout Grades: 247Sports (88), 247Sports Composite (0.8697), ESPN (80), Rivals (5.7)
• An Elite 11 finalist and participant at The Opening in 2014
• Won QB MVP honors at the 2014 Oregon Nike Football Training Camp
• Also attended Elite 11 Regional events in Los Angeles and Oakland, as well as the Oakland NFTC in 2014 where he was named a top performer by Scout in addition to camps at Cal, Colorado State, UCLA and the Washington Rising Stars event, the NLA Elite 7-on-7 event in Las Vegas in 2013, and the Barton Football Academy and Barton Combine where he was named the top underclassman in 2012
• One of 10 Elite 11 quarterbacks since 2003 to attend Cal as a member of the 2014 class with others including current teammate Davis Webb as well as former teammate and 2016 NFL Draft No. 1 overall pick Jared Goff, both in the class of 2013
Other
• Full name is Ross Buchanan Bowers
• Born November 19, 1996
• Son of John and Joanne Bowers
• Father, John, is currently the Dean of Discipline and an assistant football coach at Clayton Valley Charter High School after spending three seasons on the football coaching staff at his alma mater James Madison helping lead the Dukes to a 2016 FCS national championship in his final season at the school while serving as outside linebackers coach and special teams coordinator
• Mother, Joanne, spent 10 seasons from 2006-16 as the head women’s gymnastics coach at Washington, where she led the Huskies to NCAA Regional play in each of those campaigns and sent individuals to the NCAA Championships on seven occasions and after sitting out one season is now the head women's gymnastics coach at San Jose State
• Major is American studies
Last Updated
October 6, 2018
