The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/544673
COMMITMENT PROFILE Harbaugh was out there playing vol- leyball and climbing the rock wall. I was just like 'Wow.' Everyone is in and has bought in to everything. The coaches don't just direct you and look over everyone; they are out there doing it with you. That's big for the bond on the field." That kind of player-coach relation- ship is what ultimately allowed Evans to feel comfortable at Michigan, and his prep coaches saw it when he re- turned from his visit. T.J. Whittaker is the running backs coach at Ben Davis and wasn't directly involved in Ev- ans' recruitment, but he did get to hear about how things were going along the way. When Evans chose Michigan, it wasn't a surprise to his position coach. "When the Michigan offer came about, I know he felt really good about it," Whittaker said. "Chris is one of those guys that wants to com- pete on the highest level. He doesn't shy away from competition at all, and I think he saw Michigan as a big-time offer and an opportunity for that." Evans is beyond happy to be com- mitted to Michigan, but recruiting doesn't end until he signs a letter of intent in February, and he knows that. He says he's very solid to the Wolver- ines while noting you only go through the process once. "I'm going to enjoy the process," Evans said. "I'm firm, and I'm a Mich- igan commit. A school would have to shoot fireworks in the air and spell my name out to get me to flip. There's nothing that's going to stop me from going to Michigan." — Brandon Brown FILM EVALUATION Strengths: Evans has speed that stands out against high school competition. He also has good vision, nice lateral cutting ability and an impressive burst to avoid tackles. As a receiver, he shows good patience in his routes and does a nice job of getting into open space. You can tell he's been taught to protect the ball, and he runs with good leverage. As he runs, he exhibits a quick shoulder turn allowing him to get up field in a hurry. Areas of Improvement: It's fun to watch a player like Evans run free in open space and get behind the defense with ease to catch deep balls. However, that open space against soft coverage won't be there at the next level. Big Ten teams like to run press man coverage, and Evans is going to have to be physical enough to fight off 6-0 and taller corners to get open. Evans will also have to adjust to the physicality of defensive backs in college when it comes to getting open and blocking downfield on running plays. Those are things that come easy in high school, but will be much more difficult in college. Michigan Player Comparison: Evans looks like he'll remain in the slot and he could have a role like Jeremy Gallon (2010-13) did in Ann Arbor. They have similar frames and both possessed great burst and speed. — Analysis from TheWolverine.com