New Irish Target Could Be Real Steal

No one could blame Evan Fields if he needed a minute or two to collect himself after the lengthy drive from Oklahoma to Texas to work with his trainer, but the 2017 Oklahoma safety is always ready to go, according to Clay Mack.

“He’ll get out of the car after about a three-hour drive and the first thing he’ll do is smile,” said Mack, who trains several top defensive backs in the Oklahoma/Texas area like LSU star Jamal Adams and top 2017 prospects DeAngelo Gibbs, Jeff Okudah, Justin Broiles and Robert Barnes.

When Fields gets out of the car, he knows he’s going to work.

“He absolutely loves it and he already knows I’m going to train him hard, I’m going to coach him hard,” said Mack. “He absorbs it.”

And Mack knows Fields has come to work.

“He never has a wrinkle in his forehead,” said Mack. “If I send him back 15 times in a row, he’s going to listen to what I’m telling him and go back and correct. He’s one of those guys who likes to get approval. He likes to please because he knows if he pleases, he’s making progressions as well.

“He loves to get better. He loves to be the best. Work runs from him, he doesn’t run from work.”

One of Mack’s most important tasks is getting his pupils to marry the physical and mental sides of the game.

“With a lot of kids, it’s just understanding how your skillset applies to your scheme,” said Mack. “A lot of times, these kids aren’t able to truly execute their skill based on their schemes because a lot of times in high school, the schemes aren’t as complex as college. As far as my training, I try to heighten the skill development side of it and put them in scenarios I know they’re going to be in in college.

“I’m trying to show him the skill development side of it and how his fundamentals and skills assist with his knowledge of the game and how they correlate.”

And for safeties like Fields, Mack also puts it on himself to teach them the tools of a cornerback.

“I train all of my DBs with a corner skillset,” he said. “That’s one of the things he’ll continue to pick up, but that he’s working on with me as well.”

At 6 feet, 2 inches and 190 pounds, Fields offers Mack plenty to work with.

“First and foremost, I think it’s his size,” the trainer said of what stands out about the Midwest City High School standout. “He’s a good to great-sized kid. His size sticks out, but even more so than that is his mentality, his work ethic and it’s obvious that he knows how to play football. Once you put those attributes together, you have Evan Fields.

“He’s one of those elite talents. He’s college-ready as it relates to his body and his mental stability. Naturally, he will need to get into a program to learn extended schemes, but physically, he’s ready right now.”

Fields has seen his recruitment get a major boost with the offers from the Irish and the Ducks coming in just the last couple of weeks and narrowed his list of schools to Notre Dame, Oregon, Arizona State and Kansas State earlier this month. He plans on taking an official to South Bend in January.

Mack believes part of the reason more major schools didn’t jump on him sooner had to do with Fields being from Oklahoma instead of Texas.

“If he was inside the borders of Texas let's say, he would be one of those kids who would get a lot of attention," said Mack. "Oklahoma has a lot of kids like that. I think Oklahoma gets a raw deal as it relates to the marketing aspect of high school football because there is a lot of good football played up there in Oklahoma.

“Evan is way under the radar. When you put his size and athletic ability and his film together, when you watch his film, it's like he's out there with kids because his physical nature is off the charts. His football IQ is on par with where it needs to be. He gets it. He's fast enough and the whole nine. I think he's the total package and I think he'll continue to develop. He's one of those kids who is under the radar for real.”