Is Notre Dame Tight End Mitchell Evans Becoming “the Guy?”
On Saturday, Mitchell Evans neared the top of his route and became engulfed in a bear hug from Ohio State linebacker Steele Chambers.
He wasn’t the first read on the 2nd-and-9 play call, but quarterback Sam Hartman found him anyway. He shed his defender, but Chambers held onto his right arm.
“I get out of my break, the ball was coming out,” Evans said, “so I was like, ‘Okay, I gotta do something.’”
Evans shot his left hand into the air and brought the ball in, trapping it against his chest for a 13-yard reception.
“Squeeze it, grab it, (do) whatever,” Evans said, “and I came down with it.”
In the first half, Evans owned Chambers, a former top-150 running back recruit, for three catches, 27 yards and two first downs.
Ohio State tried to cover him with linebackers Cody Simon and All-American Tommy Eichenberg, but both failed. Evans also beat safety Lathan Ransom for a 12-yard first-down pickup.
Evans finished with a team-high seven receptions on seven targets for 75 yards and five-first down conversions. He earned Pro Football Focus’ highest grade for a tight end in Week 4.
The 17-14 loss to Ohio State hurt, but Evans learned a profound lesson against a Buckeye defense filled with blue-chip talent.
It doesn’t matter the defender; he can conquer any one-on-one matchup.
“I learned, put a linebacker on me, I’ll win,” Evans said. “Put a safety on me, I’ll win.”
Taking It “Personal”
Evans grew up in Wadsworth, Ohio, and committed to Notre Dame on July 31, 2020, with a less impressive offer list than you’d expect for a prospect heading to Tight End U.
The other schools recruiting him consisted of mid-tear ACC and Big Ten programs, as well as in-state Cincinnati and Harvard.
Despite playing high school ball two hours northeast of Columbus, Evans grew up a borderline Ohio State hater — cheering on a Marcus Mariota-led Oregan team instead.
Given his proximity, he still expected the Buckeyes to at least give him a serious look.
Instead, the in-state powerhouse went with three-star Aurora, Colo., tight end Sam Hart, who’s played 18 snaps in Buckeye uniform.
He remembered that slight heading into Saturday’s contest.
“It was personal for me because I’m from Ohio,” Evans said, “and they didn’t really recruit me coming out of high school.”
Of course, back then the Notre Dame staff had to project Evans to the tight end position, especially after an “injury-riddled” junior season. Plus, the 6-foot-5, 240-pound prospect played quarterback and missed out on valuable camp opportunities due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
As a senior, Evans threw for 2,100 yards, rushed for at least 400 yards and totaled 31 touchdowns.
“He was accounting for over 300 yards of offense a game and was certainly a reason why we were scoring 40 points per game this year,” Wadsworth head coach Justin Todd told ISD’s Christian McCollum shortly after the early signing period in 2020. “That was all because of Mitch’s ability to distribute the ball, but also be an athletic run threat.”
Becoming “The Guy”
Notre Dame almost exclusively used Evans as an extra blocker in 2021 and 2022, targeting him three times in both regular seasons for two catches and 21 yards.
Last fall, he also emerged as a short-yardage specialist. With 1-yard to gain, then-offensive coordinator Tommy Rees lined Evans under center to run the quarterback sneak.
At first, this play was unstoppable. On Evans’ first six attempts, he picked up 11 yards, converted five first downs, including twice on 4th-and-1, and scored a touchdown.
The gimmick ran its course last fall in the regular-season finale against USC. Notre Dame trailed 10-0 early in the second yard and held the ball at the Trojan 27-yard line on 4th-and-1. Evans motioned under center, but the USC defensive front stuffed him, and the Irish turned the ball over on downs.
It’s impossible to tell if Evans was capable of more at the time because Notre Dame still had Michael Mayer, a two-time All-American and future second-round NFL Draft pick who snagged 138 catches for 1,649 yards and 16 touchdowns over the prior two seasons.
There simply weren’t opportunities for another tight end to stand out in the Irish pass game until Mayer decided to sit out the 2022 Gator Bowl against South Carolina.
That’s when coach Marcus Freeman first witnessed Evans’ potential.
”All of a sudden, Michael Mayer isn’t playing, and we are a tight end-heavy offense,” Freeman said. “The bowl prep, I noticed he could be the guy.”
Notre Dame defeated the Gamecocks 45-38, and Evans snagged three catches for 39 yards, including a 16-yard, game-winning touchdown with 1:38 left in the game.
He used his Gator Bowl success to attack the offseason with a new level of ferocity.
“I had to develop that mindset out of the Gator Bowl with the ‘vacancy of Mike,’” Evans said. “That was a big vacancy. So. going into the offseason and even this season, I just felt like I had to step up, for myself, and bring the guys with me in the room.”
The 2023 season got off to an unusual start, with Notre Dame failing to target a tight end for the first time since 2016.
Evans has at least one reception in the other three games he’s played this season for 12 catches and 138 yards. He also converted a first down on 3rd-and-1 against N.C. State with a two-yard quarterback sneak.
In the 45-24 victory over the Wolfpack, he also witnessed tight end Holden Staes go off for 115 yards and two touchdowns on four receptions. H-back Davis Sherwood also picked up his first career score with a 10-yard touchdown reception.
Currently, Staes leads the Irish with four touchdown catches and averages 20.5 yards per snag.
“All season, I feel like (it could be) anybody in our room,” Evans said. “We’ve have a lot of guys who have that capability because it’s Notre Dame.”
Hartman also prefers to spread the ball around. Seven different pass-catchers have over 100 yards through five games, but no one has more than 13 receptions or 250 yards.
Thus, it’s unlikely Evans will assume a Mayer-like role and become the go-to target. Still, he knows he’s capable of dominating his individual matchup and intends to be ready for another breakout performance whenever Notre Dame calls upon him to do so.
“I go out there every day,” Evans said, “and work my butt off and just try to hold that standard (of) what Tight End U at Notre Dame is like.”