Dominique Bowman, expected to be hired by Arkansas to coach cornerbacks, is an outgoing and dynamic personality, according to two high school coaches familiar with him.
Milan, Tenn., defensive coordinator Marc Cobb has known Bowman since 2015 and considers him a mentor.
“First of all, he’s an amazing guy and an amazing person,” Cobb said. “He’s one of my best friends in the world and we’ve probably only been friends for the last six years.”
A Memphis native, Bowman was a defensive coordinator at Cordova High School in Memphis for two seasons before joining the staff at Arkansas-Montcello as defensive backs coach in 2016.
Cobb said Bowman is a football junkie and detail oriented.
“I watched him climb the ladder from Arkansas-Monticello to UT-Martin to Austin Peay to Marshall and now to Arkansas,” said Cobb, who coached Razorbacks freshman defensive back Anthony Brown. “He’s a football guy. He doesn’t have any hobbies. He don’t hunt, he doesn’t fish, he doesn’t play golf.
"He may shoot a little basketball, but he’s definitely a football guy.”
Because Bowman is very personable and has an engaging personality, Cobb sees him being an excellent recruiter.
“Arkansas will be getting a good, good recruiter,” said Cobb, who coached Arkansas quarterback KJ Jefferson at North Panola High School in Mississippi. “They’re going to get a heck of a recruiter. He knows how to recruit the kids in his room. He’s a people person. I think that will weigh on a lot of kids and their decisions. He’s going to be relentless.
"His philosophy – I kind of stole it from him – is ‘Recruit to make an impact, not just recruit to make contact.’”
Cobb predicts Bowman will advance quickly in the coaching world.
“I look for Dominique Bowman, and you can quote me on this, to be a Power 5 coordinator in the next three years,” Cobb said. “He’s a grinder.”
Brownsville (Tenn.) Haywood coach Chris Smith has known Bowman for about eight years. He said Bowman is a relentless recruiter who is well known in the region.
"All the kids know him, all the coaches have built relationships with him. He’s definitely going to be able to have a recruiting impact down here,” Smith said. “He’s a great communicator. He calls, he checks in, he follows up. He asks what players you have. I really think he has an uncanny ability to connect with the players.”
Bowman is "a technician," Smith said.
“I know he’s very passionate about his technique and fundamentals of secondary play,” Smith said. “He’s one of the best in the country on what he does.”
Smith, who coached against Bowman and Cordova, coached Razorbacks freshman defensive back Jaylen Lewis.
“He’s a guy who has really worked his butt off and done everything the right way,” Smith said. “I know he’s made a lot of D-backs really, really good players. I know Jaylen is going to love playing for him.”