About 25 minutes southeast of Columbus lies Pickerington, Ohio. It’s a small town that has made its impact on football at all levels.
The town boasts two high schools that are elite at football, with Pickerington North and Pickerington Central driving the town and creating seven NFL draftees apiece.
Players from both schools routinely find themselves on college football rosters all over the country, but the program at Ohio University might just have the most.
There are seven combined players from either North or Central on the current Ohio football roster, and the newly added wide receiver Preston Bowman could be the most impactful player out of the group for Ohio this season.
Bowman transferred to Ohio from Kentucky this offseason, but he has his roots in central Ohio and Pickerington.
Bowman, who is originally from Reynoldsburg, Ohio, was born to a father who played football for Miami University, joined Pickerington Central to get a better opportunity and that opportunity came with the Panthers.
“Coming from Reynoldsburg, it was a lot different just football-wise, academic-wise,” Bowman said. “I just wanted to get into a better environment, and Coach (Nate) Hillerich and all the staff did a good job bringing people in. I got brought in really well, (and) I got developed a lot.”
Bowman started to see the field as a sophomore, an impressive feat at a school like Pickerington North. From there, he kept growing and developing, eventually breaking out in his senior year as he hauled in 59 receptions for 1248 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns.
Following that electric year, he committed to the University of Kentucky, the same school that gave him his first offer. He chose the Wildcats over schools like Ohio State, Michigan and Louisville.
Ohio was in the mix early, as Bowman received his sixth scholarship offer from the Bobcats, but chose Kentucky because the old staff at Ohio wasn’t too involved with him.
“It wasn't like what people thought it was,” Bowman said. “I didn't really talk to (the Ohio coaches) that much, but being able to go through the recruiting process again, and like seeing how Ohio was inside the building and not just outside. That really gave me a true understanding of what Ohio was.”
Bowman ended up redshirting during his first year of college football in Lexington with the Wildcats. The year in general for Kentucky was a tough one, as the team went 5-7 overall with just a 2-6 record in the Southeastern Conference.
That disappointing year led to long-time Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops’ firing at the end of the season, a move that forced a decision for Bowman.
“We were getting ready to go into the next season,” Bowman said. “Then (Mark) Stoops got fired that next day, and it was like a roam around for a coach, and when they got the coach, I just felt like it was in my best interest to move on and see what other schools were available.”
Ohio was right on the tail of Bowman, and the coaching staff reached out to the young playmaker as soon as he entered the transfer portal.
“They reached out to me the first day the portal opened up, and I knew I wanted to take a visit here just to see how it was,” Bowman said. “Coach (Kyle) Obly, he's ahead of his time, he knows the game so well. And as I said, I couldn't pass that up.”
To go along with the coaching staff, Bowman had an opportunity to join four other Pickerington North Panthers at Ohio, with redshirt freshman running back Michael Taylor, redshirt freshman cornerback Tyson Long and the Miller brothers, redshirt sophomore tight end AJ Miller and freshman safety Ryan Miller.
Bowman has an especially good relationship with Taylor, who served as the ground game playmaker to complement Bowman’s skills through the air.
“Mike was my first friend going to Pickerington,” Bowman said. “I grew up with him. AJ lives a couple of houses down the road, and I grew up going against (Tyson) every day in practice."
The group of Panthers turned Bobcats did some recruiting and sold Bowman on his visit here, leading to his commitment this offseason.
Since arriving in Athens, the coaching staff has gotten a different kind of grit out of Bowman.
“They're gonna bring out the dog, the grit and perseverance,” Bowman said. “That's what I tapped into when I got here.”
Ohio fans will be looking for Bowman to show that grit this upcoming year on Saturdays in Peden Stadium, as he and his fellow Pickerington North alumni will be looking to make an impact in the green and white.
“I know those boys; we know each other really well,” Bowman said. “As I said, it's hard to pass that up, to go compete again with them again and be along their side.”
