Welcome to All 105, a Nittany Sports Now series profiling each Penn State football player. Our eighth feature is on sophomore wide receiver Omari Evans.
Before Penn State: Evans played at Robert M. Shoemaker High School in Killeen, Texas, where he was a team captain as a senior. In his senior year, he recorded 853 receiving yards, 818 rushing yards and 16 total touchdowns. He played quarterback, wide receiver and defensive back for Shoemaker. He was a four-star recruit according to ESPN and a three-star recruit according to Rivals, On3, and 247Sports.
Last year: Evans appeared in all 13 games for Penn State football, posting five catches for 55 yards and a touchdown. He returned two kickoffs for 33 yards.
The touchdown Evans caught was also the first that former five-star QB Drew Allar threw in his college career. Allar, now entering his second season, is projected to be Penn State’s starter in 2023.
Where He Stands: Evans is in the mix to be one of Penn State’s three starting receivers, along with players such as KeAndre Lambert-Smith, Dante Cephas, Malik McClain and Harrison “Trey” Wallace. Evans had an impressive spring, highlighted by his performance in the Blue-White Game April 15, where he caught five passes for 80 yards and the game’s only touchdown.
Quotes about Evans: “Offensively, It was good to see some young guys step up. I thought Omari stepped up and we needed a third receiver to step up.”
— Penn State coach James Franklin on Evans’s Blue-White Game performance.
Quote from Evans: “It boosted my confidence a lot,” Evans said after the Blue-White game.
“When you do that in front of a lot of people, in front of your coaches, consistently, then your is going to boost a lot. My confidence is pretty high right now.
