The impact of junior Alvin Bowen is being felt immediately.

The linebacker is seeing the first starting action of his career and is making the most of it.

Through three games, Bowen leads the nation in tackles with 48.

He recorded 20 stops in Iowa State’s opening win against Toledo and added 13 tackles against UNLV.

Against Iowa, Bowen again reached double digits in tackles with 15. He also had a fourth-quarter interception that gave the Cyclone offense one last chance to get back into the game.

“I’m really pleased with him,” said coach Dan McCarney. “It’s a shame in a game we lost [against Iowa], he gets lost in the shuffle. He’s really playing well.”

McCarney talked about Bowen’s expected impact in this weekend’s game against Texas.

“He’s one of those guys, if you’re going to go down a dark alley – and we’re going to go down a real dark alley in Texas this weekend – he’s one of the guys you want to take with you.”