‘Boomakat’ can really boom

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This article was published 18/06/2010 (5915 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The word is Boomakat.

Don’t know it? Well, a quick check of several different online dictionaries — both English and the urban varieties — reveals little. Turns out there is an electronic band by the name Boomkat, but that’s as close as one can get.

Float the term Boomakat around the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, however, and you’ll probably find a positive response. It’s within this group where not only the origin of the term exists, but also where the club hopes the word comes to life.

"Boomakat — that’s my nickname," a surprised Marcellus Bowman said as he walked off the Canad Inns Stadium field Thursday afternoon.

Moniker

The moniker started a few years back at Liberty High School in Girard, Ohio. It was there Bowman and his friends would wrestle with each other from time to time, horsing around when the opportunity presented itself.

When a combatant lost the edge on a random fight and was slammed to his back, he got "boomed."

Bragging rights for the winner; ridicule for the loser.

"I was telling one of my teammates at Boston College about this, telling him how we used to be ‘boom cats’ — you know, talking in slang like that — back in high school and he misunderstood what I was saying," Bowman explained. "His English wasn’t great, so he called me Boomakat after that. It just grew into my nickname once I started making a few big hits in college.

"When I hit guys, they go backwards — that’s a boom."

At Boston College, under the watchful eye of former Bombers defensive co-ordinator Frank Spaziani (1992-93), Bowman suited up as a strong safety and became known around football circles for his close-down speed and his knack for filling guys in when the opportunity presented itself. He had 73 tackles and two interceptions with the Eagles in his senior year.

No one took a flier on Bowman at the 2010 NFL Draft, as clubs found him to be a ‘tweener guy’ — a little too small to be a force near the line of scrimmage, but not fast enough to make a difference in the secondary. So Bowman looked into his options up north, signing with Winnipeg before the start of training camp.

Coming to Canada meant a change in positions for the 6-2, 225-pound import, moving from safety to WIL (weak-side) linebacker. With that spot available in camp (thanks to the release of Siddeeq Shabazz in the off-season), it’s a switch the Bombers hope he can make with ease.

"The safeties in the NFL and college are usually more suited to be WIL linebackers in this league," Bomber head coach Paul LaPolice told reporters Thursday. "He’s got good range, he runs well. It’s good to have him back practising (Bowman had the flu earlier this week), because he’s got some ability. He was great on special teams, too."

LaPolice indicated that the battle for the weak-side opening is a test of strength between Bowman, Courtney Smith (who saw time in four games with the B.C. Lions in 2009), SaMario Houston and the newest addition to the Bombers’ training camp roster, import linebacker Merrill Johnson.

adam.wazny@freepress.mb.ca