| No. 4 Edmonton Eskimos | |
| Date of birth: | July 10, 1985 |
| Place of birth: | Chattanooga, Tennessee |
| Career information | |
|---|---|
| Status: | Active |
| CFL status: | Import |
| Position(s): | WR |
| Height: | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
| Weight: | 223 lb (101 kg) |
| College: | Oklahoma State |
| High school: | Notre Dame |
| Organizations | |
| As player: | |
| 2008 2009–2010 2011–present |
Saskatchewan Roughriders Winnipeg Blue Bombers Edmonton Eskimos |
Adarius Bowman (born July 10, 1985 in Chattanooga, Tennessee) is an Canadian football wide receiver for the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League. He was signed by the Saskatchewan Roughriders as an undrafted free agent in 2008. Bowman was traded to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on April 1, 2009. He played college football at Oklahoma State.
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Bowman was ranked by ESPN as the top wide receiver in Tennessee while playing at Notre Dame High School. Not only did he catch passes on offense, but also had 4 interceptions and 75 tackles as a junior on defense. Bowman had 293 receiving yards and 5 touchdowns (a losing effort) in a 2001 game against The McCallie School, the eventual TSSAA Division II-AAA Champions. He played in the 2003 U.S. Army All-American Bowl.
After graduating from high school, Bowman began his collegiate career at North Carolina.
As a true freshman, Bowman played in all 12 games but only started 2. During the span of the 12 games, he netted 181 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
Although he had played in every game the previous season, Bowman only saw action 6 times during the 2004 season. Despite playing in fewer games than in the previous season, he managed to amass 329 receiving yards and 3 touchdowns. He was dismissed from the team following the North Carolina State game along with Isaiah "Puff" Thomas and Fred Sparkman for possession of marijuana.
Between the 2004 and 2005 seasons, Bowman transferred to Oklahoma State, where he would become a college football standout under first-year head coach Mike Gundy. He was redshirted during his junior year, but was back on the field in 2006.
In his first game in an Oklahoma State uniform, a 52-10 win over Missouri State, Bowman reeled in a 19-yard touchdown plus two other passes totaling 28 yards. A few weeks later, in the game against Kansas that came to define his career, he pulled down 13 passes totaling a Big 12 record 300 yards. His four touchdowns, including a 64-yarder from Bobby Reid, made him a candidate for ESPN’s College Football Player of the Week. By the end of the season, he had caught 60 passes—51 of which resulted in first down or touchdown yardage.
After the season ended, Bowman was named Big 12 Offensive Newcomer of the Year by both the Associated Press and the Big 12 coaches. At the team’s football banquet, he was presented with the Bob Fenimore Award, which is presented annually to Oklahoma State’s MVP.
Going in to the season, Bowman was ranked as one of the top receiver prospects in the 2008 NFL Draft. Mel Kiper Jr. ranked him as the 19th overall senior prospect before the season.[1] He had a pedestrian season in 2007, catching 61 passes for 932 yards and 7 touchdowns. After the season, his stock plummeted after running only a 4.74 on his 40 yard dash and being cited for yet another drug related offense.[2] He was not drafted in the 2008 NFL draft.
Bowman was once regarded as a potential first-round pick in the 2008 NFL Draft, but a string of events led to him going undrafted. First, an injury suffered against Kansas when hit by Aqib Talib caused him to miss the final two games of the regular season and scouts to question his durability. Next, poor performances at the Senior Bowl and practices preceding it caused his stock to drop further. At the 2008 NFL Combine, he ran a 4.74 40 yard dash, and had an even slower time at Oklahoma State's Pro Day. Later, he was arrested for possession of marijuana in April 2008, but was still projected as a late round draft pick. After going undrafted, he went unsigned as a rookie free agent, despite drawing interest by the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles.
After failing to sign with an NFL team following the 2008 NFL Draft, Bowman signed a contract with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League in May 2008.
Bowman erupted for 112 yards and a touchdown on six catches in his debut for the Saskatchewan Roughriders. His 73-yard TD clinched Saskatchewan's win over the Edmonton Eskimos.
Bowman was traded to the Blue Bombers from the Saskatchewan Roughriders on April 1, 2009. He was traded along with non-import offensive lineman Jean-Francois Morin-Roberge, and non-import safety Brady Browne in exchange for import offensive lineman Dan Goodspeed. The Roughriders then traded Goodspeed to the Hamilton Tiger Cats for non-import offensive lineman Jordan Rempel. Bowman finished the year with 925 receiving yards and 6 touchdowns.
In an issue he has had throughout his entire CFL career, Bowman continued to drop balls in the 2010 season, often contributing to losses in a difficult Blue Bombers' season. After failing to rectify this problem, he was demoted from the starting line-up and was eventually released on Oct. 20, 2010.[3]
On January 19, 2011, Bowman was signed by the Edmonton Eskimos.[4] The 2011 CFL season was a breakout year for Bowman recording 1,153 yards and 4 touchdowns. On November 5th Bowman had a career game collecting 226 yards with 2 touchdowns.