Nearly two years ago to the day, Omari Evans made his Penn State debut as a true freshman against the Purdue Boilermakers. While he did not record a reception in that game, it was a notable debut.
Why?
Because on the Nittany Lions game winning drive against the Boilermakers, Evans was on the field. In fact, he was on the field for the game winning touchdown. While for many it would go unnoticed, it was a mark of trust by the Nittany Lions coaching staff at the time on a very young and raw wide receiver.
Coming out of Shoemaker High School in Killeen, Texas, Evans was the true embodiment of an athlete but spent a majority of his time taking snaps at quarterback.
Overall, his true freshman season was a quiet one, just five receptions for 55 yards and a touchdown. That being said, the Texas native's presence on the field as a true freshman didn't go unnoticed.
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His flashes as a true freshman plus his sub-4.4 speed and tremendous athleticism made him a potential breakout candidate for the 2023 season. Ultimately, that was not the case. Instead he recorded just four receptions for 94 yards and a touchdown across nine games.
The quiet season left many wondering what the potential ceiling was for Evans heading into this offseason and what the future may hold for the former three-star prospect.
But perhaps, the expectations of that breakout season were just a year too early.
On Wednesday, while talking to the media, Penn State head coach James Franklin, unprompted, brought up Evans and his performance on the practice field heading into the Nittany Lions' season opener.
"Now that I'm in my 50s, I'm starting to forget things," Franklin jokingly said. "The other day you guys asked me about the wide outs and I didn't mention Omari. Omari had a great training camp and we're expecting him to have a big year," he said.
Later on in his media availability, Franklin was asked to elaborate more on Evans' and where he stands coming into the season.
"He's had a really good camp and he's made a huge stride," Franklin said. "Omari is the guy I think everybody's excited for to come out and play well early on and gain confidence. He's one of these guys that his career could just take off. You talk about speed, size, athleticism, intelligence. He's got all the things that you're looking for."
"I think when he first got here he was a really good athlete and maybe a little bit of a track guy who's really growing into football, and understanding what it takes at this level," Franklin added.
"But he's a guy that there's a lot of excitement within the program a few big catches and a few big plays and he could be a guy we're talking about very different at the end of the season than maybe the conversations that are going on right now and we believe that will happen."
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