Texas Football: 5-Star RB Zachary Evans won’t commit before Signing Day

One of the once biggest names that the 2020 Texas football recruiting class tried to pursue, 5-Star RB Zachary Evans, still hasn’t made a decision.

At one time, five-star North Shore High School running back prospect Zachary Evans was one of the most coveted targets of the 2020 Texas football recruiting class. Those days have since dwindled down with about every big time college football that was pursuing Evans apparently backing off of late.

Last fall, Evans looked to have signed his National Letter of Intent to play for head coach Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs. But Georgia later released him from his signed letter of intent which then re-opened his recruitment. That came well ahead of National Signing Day, which arrives on Feb. 5.

The Texas Longhorns football program seemingly back off of the pursuit of Evans for good when he cut them from his five finalist schools way back during the 2019 regular season. His recruiting saga hasn’t picked up in terms of consistency or clarity since that point.

Now, Evans will reportedly keep his recruitment open beyond National Signing Day 2020. Since Evans is not able to sign another letter of intent before the conclusion of National Signing Day for this recruiting cycle, there is not much point for him to rush his verbal commitment this week.

Programs that still appear to be in the running to land the services of the ultra-talented, but confusing and polarizing, Evans look to be the Texas A&M Aggies, Tennessee Volunteers, Ole Miss Rebels, and maybe the Florida Gators. But it looks like head coach Dan Mullen and the Gators since backed off the pursuit of Evans. One of his last visits ahead of National Signing Day was to come with Florida.

Instead his last official visit came with head coach Jeremy Pruitt and the Vols on Jan. 24. Tennessee could be the emerging favorite to land the commitment of Evans, whenever that comes. But that recruiting saga is one that seems to never end.

Evans still has one official visit remaining, and he might wait until the beginning of spring football around the country before he gets that done. There’s a lot of programs still in the running for him around the SEC, so this process could still take quite a while.

Evans is ranked as the nation’s No. 16 2020 high school prospect and the No. 2 running back. Five-star Salpointe Catholic rusher and Texas signee Bijan Robinson passed Evans as the nation’s top prospect at the position in a recent set of updated rankings from 247Sports.