TCU lands North Shore RB Evans
Five-star recruit tied to A&M, LSU after originally signing with Georgia
North Shore running back Zach Evans is enrolled at TCU, ending an extended recruiting saga for the state’s top prospect in the Class of 2020.
The five-star recruit signed a financial aid agreement with the Fort Worth-based school Sunday night and is attending summer classes online.
Evans had signed with Georgia during the December signing period but received an unconditional release in January for undisclosed reasons. Since then, his recruitment had been linked with other SEC schools, including Texas A&M. At TCU, he will be staying in-state, but with a Big 12 school.
“Offensively, it was a good fit for me, and I want to start my own legacy,” Evans said Monday. “I wanted to do something different.” Evans planned to enroll early at Georgia after the December signing period. He wanted to make his announcement at the Under Armour All-American game in January. Instead, he postponed the announcement and ultimately received his release.
The chase for Evans heated up again. He made an official visit to Tennessee on Jan. 24. Mississippi and Florida jumped into the mix as well, although LSU and Texas A&M were thought to be frontrunners.
The attention around Evans’ recruitment slowed amid the coronavirus pandemic until Monday’s surprise announcement. TCU had offered Evans a scholarship in May after his sophomore season at North Shore but had faded from public attention in the following two years.
There isn’t any doubt about Evans’ ability. At 5-11 and 200 pounds, he is viewed as a college-ready game-breaker in the offensive backfield. He is the highest-rated recruit in TCU history.
North Shore coach Jon Kay said Evans is “definitely the most talented player who’s come through our place, has a world of talent, and hopes he found a situation where he can put those tools to use, because he’s got a great future if he does.”
Evans was a key figure during North Shore’s torrid run to Class 6A Division I state championships in 2018 and 2019. As a junior, he powered the 2018 North Shore team with 1,785 yards and 29 touchdowns, winning MaxPreps’ Junior Player of the Year award. That was after a strong sophomore year in 2017, when he rushed for 1,483 yards and 27 touchdowns and was named the Houston Chronicle’s Newcomer of the Year.
He finished his career by rushing for 1,600 yards and 20 touchdowns on 127 carries as a senior. Evans tops the Chronicle’s top 100 Class of 2020 football recruits.
Evans’ high school career included controversial moments. He was sent home from the 2019 state championship game at AT&T Stadium in Arlington after violating a team rule involving cellphones. Evans publicly apologized for the incident during the telecast of the Under Armour All-American game.
Evans also did not play in 2019 games against Ridge Point and Westfield after violating team rules. He had social media ablaze again when it became apparent he was not playing in the state semifinal against Lake Travis in Round Rock. The running back missed only the first half, though, as he was taking the ACT the morning of game day back in Houston. Evans still rushed for 176 yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries in the win.
“He’s a great kid,” Kay said Monday. “He’s got a lot of great traits. Obviously, we’ve had our ups and downs, some more publicized than others. But at the end of the day, I think you’d be hard-pressed to find anybody in the community that’s not rooting for his success.”