Samiksha Jaiswal (Editor)

Chris Evans (American football)

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Class
  
Freshman

Date of birth
  
October 5, 1997

Weight
  
91 kg

Position
  
Running back

Bowl games
  
2016 Orange Bowl

Height
  
1.8 m

High school
  
Ben Davis High School

Chris Evans (American football) touchthebannercomwpcontentuploads2015067

College
  
University of Michigan (2016–present)

Chris Evans (born October 5, 1997) is an American football running back for the Michigan Wolverines. He rushed for 112 yards and two touchdowns on eight carries (14.0 yards per carry) in his first college game on September 3, 2016.

Contents

Early years

A native of Indianapolis, Evans attended Ben Davis High School in that city. As a high school junior in 2014, he rushed for over 1,200 yards and 18 touchdowns and caught 51 passes for 676 yards and 10 touchdowns. As a high school senior in 2015, he rushed for over 1,100 yards and 15 touchdowns and caught 40 passes for 511 yards and four touchdowns. He scored 47 touchdowns in his final two years at Ben Davis High. He also competed four years of track at Ben Davis High. In high school, he ran the 100-meter dash in 10.9 seconds. The 110m hurdles in 14.28 seconds electronically which placed him 3rd at his state meet. Also was a very successful long jumper improving a from a 19 feet 11 inches to a 23 feet 1 and 25th on an inch by his senior year. One of if not the best athlete to come out of Ben Davis High School.

Recruiting and commitment

In June 2015, Evans, a long-time Ohio State fan, attended a Michigan Wolverines football satellite camp in Indianapolis. He caught the eye of Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh who proceeded to court Evans' parents. Evans gave his verbal commitment to play football at Michigan two days later. At the time, Evans said, "If coach Harbaugh thinks you're good, you must be."

After accepting an offer from Michigan, Evans was pursued by Ohio State, but he tweeted in early January 2016 that, though he was flattered by Ohio State's interest, he would maintain his commitment to Michigan.

Recruited as an athlete, Evans was known for his versatility, as he saw action in high school at running back, slot receiver and cornerback. During the preseason training camp prior to his freshman year in 2016, Evans drew praise for his explosiveness and speed. Teammate Drake Johnson described him as "mad athletic" and "real smooth . . . like butter smooth, we're just like 'ooh, wow' ", and added, "He just makes it look smooth and easy. He looks effortless when he does stuff, 'yeah, that was nice.'"

Evans has been described as having "deceptive looks." Bob Wojnowski of The Detroit News wrote: "He wears glasses (contacts during the game) and has sported a high-top haircut since he was a kid watching Will Smith on “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.”

2016 season

On September 3, 2016, Evans appeared in his first game for Michigan. In the first three quarters, he rushed for 112 yards on eight carries (14.0 yards per carry), including an 18-yard touchdown run in the second quarter and a 43-yard touchdown run in the third quarter. He became the third Michigan player to rush for over 100 yards in his college debut. After the game, head coach Jim Harbaugh said, "I knew Chris Evans was special. What you saw today is what we have been seeing in practice the last month. He's a special football player. And you didn't get to see everything he can do." Mark Snyder of the Detroit Free Press wrote of the game that "the spark came from freshman Chris Evans and his wiggle. Evans brought a different dimension than the bruising backs, maybe something U-M hasn’t seen since Denard Robinson."

Mitch Albom dubbed Evans "Captain Fantastic" and added "it might be a case of A Star is Born." Michigan running backs coach Tyrone Wheatley said of Evans: "He's like my Steph Curry in the room. Meaning that he can create his own space, can win one-on-ones and, most surprisingly ... I didn't realize how tough he was between the tackles."

On October 8, 2016, Evans registered his second 100-yard rushing game in a 78-0 victory over Rutgers. Evans led Michigan's rushing attack with 153 yards on 11 carries for an average of 13.9 yards per carry.

Through the first six games of the 2016 season, Evans was Michigan's leading rusher with 400 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 48 carries, an average of 8.3 yards per carry.

When Michigan played Florida State in the 2016 Orange Bowl at Miami's Hard Rock Stadium, Evans scored a 30-yard touchdown to give his team the lead with less than two minutes to play. It was an exciting finish to an exciting season for Evans, who will look to grow to earn a starting role in his sophomore year on the 2017 football team.

References

Chris Evans (American football) Wikipedia