Bowman gets new Pac-10 offer

Arizona is the latest offer for Gerald Bowman and according to the Woodland Hills (Calif.) Pierce C.C. defensive back it didn't take long for the Wildcats' coaching staff to make their decision.

After watching just a handful of plays from his highlight reel, Bowman said, Arizona's coaches decided it was time to send an offer. It's a big one and the 6-foot-1, 210-pound safety is definitely taking the Wildcats into consideration.

"Tuesday was the first time they heard about me," Bowman said. "I got a call that they were pretty fired up about my tape. I didn't know what was going to happen with them and then (Wednesday) morning I got a call from my defensive backs coach and he said Arizona is going to offer me.

"I called (defensive coordinator and linebackers) coach (Tim) Kish and spoke with him. Those guys said the guys were really excited. From what I heard they only watched the first three or four clips and then walked out of the room and said to offer me. They were all agreeing that I could play at that level."

Arizona State and South Florida have also offered Bowman, an aggressive and hard-hitting safety who said he plans to visit the Sun Devils and Wildcats in April for their spring games. Over the next couple months, Bowman plans to do a lot more research on Arizona's program.

"They have a really good program and the way their defense is run is pretty good," Bowman said.

"I'm going to take it from here because it's new to me and I'm new to them so I'm going to do some research on them and see how the coaches are and see how the players respond to the coaches."

Arizona State isn't taking a backseat in Bowman's recruitment. The Pierce C.C. standout said he's been getting to know assistant coaches Craig Bray and Trent Bray well and that he's looking forward to visiting Tempe, too.

"They've been in contact with me almost every day," Bowman said. "I'm building a pretty good relationship with coach Trent Bray and coach Craig Bray and we're in contact every day talking about things I need to do and just building a relationship."

Oregon and Tennessee have also been in recent contact with Bowman, who said Cal told him he's No. 1 on the list at his position but won't know for a little while whether he can get offered or not.