David Dietrich
When Julian Bowie took the floor for Boise State’s men’s basketball exhibition against Idaho on Oct. 10, it marked his first action in nearly a year. The junior hadn’t played since the 2025 Maui Invitational and hadn’t scored a point since the Nov. 18, 2025 contest against Wichita State. The starting guard showed few signs of rust, pouring in a team-high 21 points in the 82-72 victory. After the game, he met with his mom, Amy, who playfully chided him for going 2-of-8 on 3-pointers, costing him a chance at 30 points. Julian was ready to accept blame, but before he could do that, his older sister, Timmie, stepped in.
“No, that’s the right number. You’re supposed to have that,” she said. Julian quickly came to the same realization as Timmie — 21 was the number their father, Bo, wore during his playing days. Nearly one year to the day of his passing, the siblings celebrated a fitting tribute to the man who, in their mother’s words, used basketball as “a vehicle and a conduit through which we shared life together.”
Born and raised in Pocatello, Idaho, Julian has been playing basketball longer than he can remember. It runs in the family, with Bo playing at Blue Mountain Community College in Pendleton, Oregon and Julian’s older sister, Kendyll, playing at Colorado State and Fresno State. While pregnant with Julian, Amy was already used to the year-round athletic activities for Timmie. With another child on the way, she wondered if he would break the mold or follow in the footsteps of his older sisters.
“I vividly remember rolling over in bed and saying to Bo, ‘Maybe this baby will like something besides basketball. Maybe music or art? Choir or Band?’ It seemed like maybe a break from basketball and sports would be refreshing,” she said.
It did not take long for Julian’s parents to realize he shared the same love for sports, especially basketball. “He could count by threes well into the hundreds because he would shoot for hours on his Little Tikes basketball hoop,” Amy said. “Of course, all the shots were 3-pointers.”
Bo, along with Amy’s brother, Tony, coached the girls, which allowed Julian to spend hours in a real gym, shooting and dribbling on the side hoops while the team practiced. As he progressed through elementary school, he played for the Idaho Hoopsters, coached by none other than Bo himself. Much like his talented sisters, Julian drew attention for his skills. “By fifth or sixth grade, people were already asking him where he wanted to play in college,” said Amy.
That may seem early for a kid to think about college basketball, but Julian had the skills to back it up. In one game, the Hoopsters fell behind after he missed a few shots. Bo urged him to get downhill, get to the rim and create for others. We may never know if it was defiance, confidence or a combination of both, but Julian did not heed his dad’s advice.
“He started jacking NBA threes,” said Amy. “I remember watching Bo on the sidelines. First came the frustration. Then the disbelief.”
“I shot three threes in a row,” explained Julian. “I made all three.”
“Eventually, he just started laughing and shaking his head because the shots kept falling. They ended up winning the game,” Amy said. “It's one of my favorite memories because it says so much about both of them. Julian was fearless enough to take those shots, and Bo loved the game enough to coach him hard but also laugh when his son proved him wrong.”
Before Julian played at Franklin Middle School, Bo stepped away from coaching his daughter’s high school team, but missed having an impact on young players. He decided to return to the sidelines, but the only position available was at Alameda Middle School, a crosstown rival of Franklin. That winter, father and son would meet on the court. Bo used the whiteboard at home to draw up defenses that would stymie Julian, but Julian would grab his own marker to counter with sets that would allow him to score. It was settled on the hardwood, and Julian left no doubt.
“He was trying to double-team me and all this stuff, but I think I scored 30 in the first half,” Julian said. “I didn’t even have to play in the second half.”
Julian continued scoring at a high rate in high school, picking up an offer from nearby Idaho State when he was just a freshman. Bo attended every game, making sure he went straight to the gym after his middle school contests finished. By the time he finished his sophomore season, Julian had offers from Boise State and Utah State. Before he started his junior year, he visited and committed to the Broncos. “I just loved it here,” he said.
Julian scored a state-record 89 points in the state tournament as a junior, but Pocatello fell short in the Idaho 4A Championship. After winning Idaho 4A Player of the Year, he led the Thunder back to the state title game as a senior. There, Julian and Bo provided Amy with one of her favorite memories.
Near the end of the first half, Julian took a hard fall. He struggled in the third quarter, but regained his strength and battled through the pain to score 16 fourth-quarter points, leading Pocatello to a 73-67 win and the state title. When the final buzzer sounded, Julian didn’t celebrate with his teammates. Instead, he went straight to the Hillcrest sideline to console his AAU teammates who were feeling the same pain he did the year prior.
“I glanced at Bo, and the look on his face will forever be etched in my mind. It was a look of love, adoration, and pride. I know he was so proud of Julian's resilience, his leadership, his kindness and empathy,” said Amy. “Tears welled up in his eyes as he looked out on his son who had been overcoming a tough situation in front of thousands of spectators. I think that moment says a lot about their relationship.”
Julian wasted no time making an impact in the Treasure Valley, playing all but two games as a true freshman and ranking second among Mountain West freshmen in 3-point percentage (33.3%). Bo and Amy made the three-and-a-half hour drive to every home game, but things took a turn near the end of the season. In February, Bo had a heart attack. Amy tried to let Julian focus on wrapping up his first year as a Bronco, but the severity made it nearly impossible.
“Mom tried to keep me away a little bit, but there’s not much you can say that wouldn’t be serious,” explained Julian. “It was a heart attack and he had to have open heart surgery.”
Bo went in for the procedure in May 2025, but more complications arose, causing the surgery to last nearly three hours longer than expected. A doctor informed Amy and the kids there were issues with Bo’s arteries, meaning a much more difficult road to recovery. As Julian returned to Boise for summer workouts, Bo began his battle.
“He was in the hospital for months. He was going slower than he should’ve been, but we had hope,” said Julian. “I thought he was getting better.”
Shortly before the season started, things took another turn for the worse. In mid-September, Bo had a stroke and wasn’t getting any blood to his brain. By the first week of October, he was moved to hospice care. Knowing they were nearing the end of their time together, Julian left Boise to say his final goodbyes to his father, who could no longer speak. On Oct. 15, 2026, Bo passed away.
“It was hard. I can’t explain it. There’s nothing else I’ve ever had to deal with like that,” said Julian. “I wouldn't be that sad if he wasn't there for me all the time. We loved each other. The more you love someone, the harder it hurts.”
“Watching a family member pass is such a difficult thing, I was trying to cope with it myself, while making sure Bo's final weeks and days were filled with as much dignity and peace as possible,” Amy said. “In addition, I felt like I needed to make sure the kids had time to process and find a way to accept what was happening.”
Two days after his father’s death, Julian suited up for Boise State’s exhibition against Idaho. He scored three points in 19 minutes, but admits, “I shouldn’t have played. My head wasn’t in it.”
A few days later, Julian was joined by his coaches and teammates for Bo’s funeral. The group returned to Boise for five nonconference contests, but Julian struggled, averaging less than two points per game. The week of Thanksgiving, Boise State flew to Hawai’i for the Maui Invitational. There, Julian decided it was time to step away from the game.
“I was contemplating it before the Maui tournament, then the Maui tournament solidified it. I just wasn't eating, I wasn't sleeping. Playing college basketball, you're not going to be successful like that,” he said. “I was trying to fight it as long as I could, but there's only so much I could fight. I decided right after that tournament.”
It was a difficult decision, but Julian had the full backing of his coaches, teammates and family. After a conversation with head coach Leon Rice, Julian made the call to sit out the remainder of the season.
“He knew he wouldn't get anything but love and support from his family. Coach Rice and the coaching staff worked closely with him and they navigated this really well together,” said Amy. “It wasn't easy, but he did exactly what he should do, he sought guidance from trusted people in his life and they ultimately helped him make a decision that was best for him.”
Boise State assistant coach and Hall of Fame player Roberto Bergersen, who knew Bo from playing in open gyms during their college days, was there to reaffirm Julian’s decision.
“We were supposed to work out in the morning and he was like, ‘Coach, I’m exhausted. I’m just tired,’” Bergersen explained. “I told him, ‘Jules, I know you’re fighting it but you’re telling yourself what the answer is.’”
There was an immediate outpouring of support from his teammates and fans of the Broncos.
“I'm so thankful for everyone that reached out to me in the community. My teammates were great. They kept me as upbeat and positive as possible.” said Julian. “It meant a lot during a time like that. They kept me going every day and got me through it.”
Even though she knew it was the right decision, Amy still struggled to accept Julian would be stepping away from the game he and Bo loved so much.
“Knowing Bo and Julian the way I know them made it harder as well,” she said. “Bo would never want to interrupt anything that Julian had worked so hard for. Julian would want nothing more than to be there for his dad and for me and his sisters.”
By the start of conference play in late December, Julian had recovered physically, mentally and emotionally, rejoining the Broncos for practices. “I felt semi-normal and I was playing well,” he said. This was an especially positive sign for Bergersen, whose son, Rayzhon, is a teammate and close friend of Julian’s.
“I would ask Ray how Julian was doing and try to get a better feel for what was going on. When he started playing well, I couldn’t do anything but smile,” he said. “The feeling it gave me was so uplifting. His resiliency, perseverance and fortitude have been magnified.”
With even more motivation than before, Julian attacked the offseason with a new mentality.
“I realized I needed to work harder than I ever have before. To get to this point, you have to work hard, but I think I took another step this offseason,” he explained. “I needed to work harder than everybody else in the room. I got my confidence back and I'm feeling good.”
His perspective has changed, but he still leans on advice he got from Bo during his early playing days.
“One of my biggest pieces that I'm thinking of now is being grateful for the position I'm in and realizing that so many people would love to be in my position. The perspective of trying to have fun all the time is helping me a lot,” he said “I’m being aggressive as much as I can. My dad always told me there's no reason to be out there if you're not going to be aggressive.”
The aggression and joy paid off in Boise State’s three exhibition contests, as Julian averaged 16.0 points per game, well above the career average of 3.3 he entered the season with. He isn’t out to prove a point, but rather validate his own hard work.
“I want to prove to myself that putting all that work in my whole life was worth it.”
The work began when he was a child, playing H-O-R-S-E on the backyard asphalt court Bo built and painted himself. It may not have been intentional, but basketball built the Bowie family into who they are today.
“As much as we tried to keep things balanced, basketball naturally became woven into many of our family memories. Family vacations, weekends, and shared experiences often revolved around the game,” said Amy. “In that sense, basketball was important, but more importantly, it was the backdrop for so many of the experiences we shared as a family.”
There are still many experiences to be had for Julian and the family, even if Bo can’t be there physically, something Julian is still coming to terms with.
“He's watching me from elsewhere, but him not being there is a feeling I can't describe,” he said. “I’m so used to, after every game, him being there, giving me a hug and little pieces of advice. It’s different, but I need to be there for my mom and my sister.”
The family-first mindset is something Bo instilled in Julian. Each day, Julian works to become more like the man who raised him.
“Being the best person I can be, on and off the floor, being there for my teammates, putting smiles on people’s faces, those are the biggest things. The more you pour into others, the more they’ll pour into you,” he said. “My dad was kind to everybody, made everybody feel seen and I try to implement that into my life. I’m trying to make the world a better place.”
Bergersen already sees shades of Bo in Julian.
“Some of the things Julian does, his demeanor, the way he articulates a word, the way he moves, I’m like, “Oh my goodness, that’s Bo,’” he said. “Bo was one of those guys that’s super nice off the court, but on the court, he’s a competitor. Julian’s got that too. To see him walk in his dad’s footsteps and be the same caring, giving servant leader is amazing.”
Though the last two years have been filled with unimaginable grief, Julian found his way back to the game that bonded him so closely with his father. Amy knows how proud her husband would be to see their son now.
Bo would look at Julian today with the same pride, adoration, and love he showed after that state championship game. Just as he was proud watching Julian overcome adversity on the court, he would be proud of the resilience, determination, and character Julian has shown in finding his way back to basketball. More than the return itself, I think he'd be most proud of the person Julian became through the journey.Amy Bowie