The 18-year-old was progressing through the different youth ranks at the Lancashire-based club while Mowbray was in charge of Blackburn’s senior team.
Having seen the 58-year-old up close, Wharton knows how good a manager Mowbray, now in charge of Sunderland, is.
Sunderland will play Blackburn on Tuesday night in the Championship and Wharton admits it will be strange going up against his former boss.
And Wharton feels the progress the Black Cats have been making in their first year back in the Championship under Mowbray shows how good a manager he is.
“It’ll be a strange one seeing Tony on the other side”, Wharton told his club’s official site.
“He’s a great manager, he was here for five years and I was supporting the club from the stands when he first came.
“Training under him has given me some great memories and he’s doing well at Sunderland, showing what a good manager he is.
“It will be good to see him but the focus is completely on the game and getting three points to push us further up the table.”
Blackburn, under their new manager Jon Dahl Tomasson, are currently placed fifth in the league table, leading Sunderland by four points.
