When Justin Flowe officially became a college football player in 2020, many thought by this point he’d be preparing for the NFL draft.
Currently, the only thing connecting Flowe and the NFL is the league’s shield logo tattooed on his right hand. But that could change if everything goes according to plan in the linebacker’s new chapter with the Arizona Wildcats.
Flowe’s Plan A? The Upland, California, native, who played in Snoop Dogg’s youth football league as a kid and developed the moniker “Baby Man,” signed with the Oregon Ducks as a five-star prospect and top-ranked inside linebacker nationally.
Plan A was slowed down by a sequence of knee and foot injuries in Flowe’s first two seasons at Oregon before he finished with a career-high 35 tackles in 2022, including four in Tucson against the UA. But Flowe clamored for a change of scenery and entered the transfer portal with hopes that Plan B could lead to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell saying Flowe’s name at the draft podium.
“I just see it as adversity,” Flowe said. “Adversity happens to everybody, so (it’s about) the way you get through it. I’m just planning now to thrive this year and be the best I can be.
“That’s all in the past. All I can do now is focus on the future.”
Flowe was one of several defensive players the Wildcats acquired through the transfer portal this offseason. Arizona also nabbed defensive tackle Bill Norton (Georgia), outside linebacker Orin Patu (Cal), linebacker Daniel Heimuli (Washington) and defensive tackle Tyler Manoa (UCLA).
UA coach Jedd Fisch envisions all of them making an “immediate impact.”
Last season, the Wildcats bolstered the offense via their 2022 recruiting and transfer classes. Additions such as quarterback Jayden de Laura, wide receivers Jacob Cowing and Tetairoa McMillan, offensive lineman Jonah Savaiinaea and tight end Tanner McLachlan led to a significant jump in offensive production.
Linebacker Justin Flowe, shown with Oregon against Cal on Oct. 29, 2022, will play the ‘Mike’ LB spot for his new team, the Arizona Wildcats.
Although the Wildcats’ defense improved from six takeaways to 15, a point of emphasis under new defensive coordinator Johnny Nansen — and several true freshmen, including linebacker Jacob Manu, who caused two takeaways in the Territorial Cup win over Arizona State, were blooming into impactful playmakers — the UA coaching staff rolled up its sleeves and dedicated most of the recruiting efforts toward defensive players.
The transfers add seasoned talent to complement the young bucks.
“Sky’s the limit,” Flowe said of the defense. “We got a lot of young guys, and we gotta teach the young guys how it looks to be a pro and to win.”
Flowe said Fisch’s message was “he wants leaders and people to try and take over the program and show a different side of the program they’ve never seen before.”
“That’s why he brought me and Bill and all the other transfers, so we can change the defense,” Flowe said. “We do it every day at practice, when we go in the film room, when we lift. There’s just a different energy.”
When Arizona begins spring ball on March 14, Flowe will play “Mike” linebacker alongside Manu. Flowe mostly played “Will” linebacker at Oregon and said he “can play both, but Mike feels good because that’s the leader of the defense. Mike is the guy who makes all the calls on defense.” The “Will” to Flowe’s “Mike” will be Manu.
“Ever since I got out here, me and him have been clicking,” Flowe said. “We watch film, we lift together, we do a lot of stuff together. We’re going to have a good year this year.”
Manu described his new linebacker counterpart, who likely replaces two-year starter Jerry Roberts, as “a guy.” In Don Brown-speak, Flowe is “a dude.”
“I like playing next to him,” Manu said. “The guy is an animal. He attracts the ball and is a ballhawk.”
Manu is also a sponge for any expertise Flowe has to offer.
“You can never know too much,” Manu said.
New Arizona linebacker Justin Flowe — far right, leveling tight end Dalton Kincaid during the Nov. 19, 2022, Oregon-Utah matchup — can be a disruptive force on the football field.
Fisch described Flowe’s linebacker play as “pure passion, pure energy and full speed ahead.” But there’s a kicker: Sometimes the free and reckless approach can result in undisciplined play and neglecting defensive assignments.
“With Justin, we’re going to have to work through making sure that his passion doesn’t get in the way of his technique and responsibilities as a player,” Fisch said.
Said Flowe: “I’m still going to go hard regardless. But the big part — the mental part — this year is knowing my spot and knowing everyone on the defense’s spot. Me and Manu have been working hard on that.”
Controlling the chaos and mentoring Arizona’s young linebackers will be Flowe’s M.O. this season. If all goes well and Flowe lives up to the lofty expectations that were once placed on his shoulders as a five-star pup three years ago, his first year in Tucson could be his last.
“Just do everything that I wanted to do in the past — and do it now,” Flowe said. “I just want to be a leader and everything I want to be as a linebacker.”
Extra points
Manu changed his jersey number from 59 to 5. Said Manu, who wore No. 9 in high school, of the change: “No. 59 was cool, but I wanted a single-digit number and No. 5 was open. I’ll take it.” Safety Christian Young, who’s prepping for the draft, wore No. 5 on defense last season.
Arizona senior defensive analyst Beyah Rasool was announced as the next cornerbacks coach at Illinois State. Rasool is a former Pima Community College defensive backs coach and recruiting coordinator and was a defensive graduate assistant at Missouri.
Arizona sophomore transfer linebacker Justin Flowe talks about why he chose to come to become a Wildcat and his expectations in his collegiate season at Arizona Stadium on Friday, Mar. 3, 2023. Video by Aidan Wohl / Special to the Arizona Daily Star
