John Calipari gets his frontcourt target for the 2026-2027 season.
John Calipari needed a frontcourt force for Arkansas basketball next season. He got one in the transfer portal, landing Furman forward Cooper Bowser. Fox16 has more:
"Bowser (6-11 with 7-5 wingspan, 215 pounds, forward / center combo) was down to five or six schools including other high major programs in the SEC, ACC, and Big East. In addition to Arkansas, he had zoom calls with Miami, Texas A&M, Marquette, Oklahoma State, and Providence, his agent Dillon Buchanan of AMR agency confirmed with Hogville on Tuesday. He began his Arkansas visit on Monday.
"As a junior at Furman in 2025-26, Bowser averaged 13.8 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks in 29.6 minutes while shooting 76.6% from the field and 62.2% from the free throw line on his way to earning Southern Conference All Defensive team honors.
"Bowser has one more season of playing eligibility after three seasons at Furman. In his most recent campaign, Bowser started in 22 of the 25 games he played in, but he missed 10 games spanning a month with a toe injury.
"His most productive outing — 21 points, 11 rebounds, and 3 assists — helped Furman defeat Southern Conference regular season champion East Tennessee State, 76-61, in the SoCon tournament championship game, allowing the Paladins to earn the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
"Bowser finished his Furman career with 9 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks, and 1 steal in the 15-seed Paladins’ 82-71 loss to 2-seed UConn in the first round of the NCAAT on March 20."
Is this the biggest possible splash John Calipari could have made? No. However, there is certainly material to work with here. Bowser was hurt for portions of last season, so his statistical production wasn't as extensive as it would have been if he was healthier. There's probably more upside here than the numbers would initially seem to indicate.
Another encouraging aspect of this transfer portal pickup is that Furman gave UConn -- the eventual national runner-up -- a legitimate battle in that NCAA Tournament first-round game. Furman was not a pushover, and neither was Bowser. This is a tenacious, hungry player, which is definitely something Arkansas needed. He might be less than fully powerful or rugged, but he will fight for loose balls and give the Hogs good effort. Every team can use a player like him.
The real question is if Bowser does enough to fully resolve the Razorbacks' questions and limitations in the frontcourt. Probably not. It raises the point that Arkansas could actually choose to get a true center instead of a shooter in the portal. That's a key decision Calipari has to make right now.