Jordan Evans is Special
Posted on: October 30, 2013
Image from Soonersports.com
With all the injuries that have struck Oklahoma’s LB core we’ve seen two true freshman step on the scene. Dom has done a lot of good things and is only going to get better. As for Jordan Evans, well, he might end up being truly special.
I know the other Football Brainiacs loved how Evans played. In fact Super K was taking notes while re-watching the game and said almost every other note was about something Evans did. I’m going to try to give you a little closer look at what we liked so much about Evans.
Evans played the strong side backer spot. In order to breakdown Evans game we’ll divide things into two major categories: how he played outside the box (against the pass) and how he played inside the box (against the run).
In the 1st half we saw him outside the box a lot when Tech played trips (3 WRs to one side of the formation). Evans actually played CB early on in high school until he outgrew the position and that was obvious against Tech right away. Despite his size he has a very natural feel in coverage. Tech was using digs and crossing routes that traditionally beat cover 2 schemes but Evans held up nicely. Tech’s big TE, Jace Amaro, did beat him a couple times when Jordan manned him up but it was on drag routes which are designed to beat man coverage and its freakin’ Jace Amaro! Amaro will probably be named an All-American at the end of the year.
Inside the box Jordan wasn’t always great against the run but there was a lot to like from the true freshman. He’s definitely quick and he uses that quickness to keep himself from getting walled off. He’s also much more decisive and aggressive than you’d expect from a kid this young. A particular play comes to mind that Super K mentioned where he reads the play immediately and hits the hole. He did a good job of avoiding the offensive lineman trying to block him. His only mistake was he pulled up at the last second. It looked like he was trying to redirect himself or maybe reposition himself to make the tackle. What he’ll learn is if he continues to attack the gap he’ll blow up the play by forcing his runner back inside. What he did wrong he’ll figure out. What he did right was a great demonstration of his natural instincts.
Some of the misdirection plays led to a few false steps and he’ll need to clean up his footwork/positioning because he got himself over extended a few times and missed tackles. For an inside LB footwork is everything and when he has more time to develop those things, watch out!
Overall, Evans is a dynamic and instinctive LB. He breaks down plays quickly and he’s smooth in coverage. I think everyone saw his diving pass break up! He was able to man up on the RBs when asked to but still showed he can play the run plenty good for a young kid. He has that innate ability to diagnose a play quickly and to get to the ball. And let’s not forget Evans hasn’t even had a year in a college S&C program but he has a tremendous frame and is going to easily get to 230 lbs+ and be even more athletic than he is now.
Everyone should remember that even the great OU LBs like Calmus, Lewis, and Lehman were afforded a red-shirt year. This years LBs are young. Two true freshman and even Shannon himself is still fairly young and inexperienced. Striker is a RS freshman. When you consider how young the LB corp is and how well they’ve done in spite of their youth, it won’t surprise me if Evans, Alexander, Shannon and Striker end up being the best LB core in the past 8 years. There may be plenty of growing pains this year but pain is part of the process. The future is bright.
5 Comments
Right on Ace. I’m excited about the future. We are real young yet we are still getting good results on the field as a team…btw Striker played ST last year and hasn’t redshirted
Definitely with you on that JD. I’m really excited about Evans, and once Alexander gets an offseason, he’s going to be really good too. I’m really hopeful we can pull in DeVante Bond to play the other rush end opposite Striker. That would be nasty over there since they couldn’t tilt the protection to Striker. Bookend Nastiness!
I love what Kish has and is doing. Most don’t know football (not that I do) and they trash Kish. Right now, he’s got his kids overplaying more than any other position on the team. These two youngsters will be special since they are also intelligent and hard working. The physical is there and the mental is getting there with each new rep. This is what we spoke about this summer every week. These young kids will be fun to watch as they get better and better each week. I like the balance this D is starting to get. Due to major injuries we won’t see it this year, but next year should be special for OU. We will have anchors at each position, but also on each side of the field. Good luck trying to find the weak link to pic on. I see that with the backers, especially if we can keep Bond away from Lincoln. I look at how teams have tried to pick on Sanchez over Colvin and we see how well that’s working out for most teams. Alexander has become steadier and steadier and Evans just played great considering his inexperience. Busts will happen and missed tackles will also happen, but it’s starting to happen less and less. Glad to see you pick out some of these youngsters who’s motors never stop.
Having read this and the story on the size of OU’s ‘backers, was wondering what you think about the unit as a whole. Pretty obvious that OU is recruiting ‘over-sized’ safeties to defend spreads and I like that versatility. What about their use and positioning, which speaks some to Coach Kish, who I think is doing a good job in his ‘first year’ where LBs are being utilized in this scheme. And how the ‘commits’ might fit into this scheme. Thanks. Love this site and your commentary.
Thanks Houligan! I think what’s interesting about Dom and Evans is they are bigger framed guys than Shannon and Corey but they are every bit as athletic. In fact I believe both of them played some DEnd in their senior years in HS. Once they’ve had some time in the S&C program they will be very diverse LBs. The type of LBs that can play uncovered if need be and still have the ability to move in space. Yost actually told me that Evans looks like a really tall DB and he certainly moves like one.