We are a little over a month away from the college football season starting and what better way than to evaluate athletes who are on the rise. This segment will feature Notre Dame’s tight end Mitchell Evans.

The University of Notre Dame has a history of producing very physical tight ends. Just several years ago, Michael Mayer was selected in the second round of the 2023 NFL Draft by the Las Vegas Raiders. His 6-foot-4-inch 265 pound frame made him a mismatch on the football field, especially in the redzone. He captured nine touchdowns in his last college season.

Evans is the new tight end in town and he is even taller than Mayer standing at 6-foot-5-inches and 260 pounds. After catching a combined five passes in his first two seasons at Notre Dame, Evans carved out a role in 2023 and was productive on offense. He caught 29 receptions for 422 yards, a 14.6 average, and one touchdown. This upcoming season, Evans is poised for a breakout and should double his targets and receptions, as Notre Dame’s offense looks to surround their new quarterback with a safety blanket type of athlete.

Pro Football Focus wrote an article titled: ‘College Football: The top-10 returning tight ends for the 2024 season’ in which author Max Chadwick discussed Evans and how he is the next breakout star for the Irish.

Evans was playing like one of the best tight ends in the country before a torn ACL ended his season after just eight games. Before going down though, his 422 receiving yards stood fourth among all tight ends in the nation. The only ones who had more were Dallin Holker, Brock Bowers and Cade Stover. All three are among the top-five tight end prospects on PFF’s 2024 NFL Draft big board. Evans’ 10 forced missed tackles in that span trailed only Bowers among FBS tight ends as well.

The junior finished with an 83.7 PFF receiving grade on the season, which placed him seventh among all tight ends in America. He particularly excelled at finding the soft spots in zone coverage. The junior’s 97.3 PFF receiving grade against zone/underneath/top coverage was in the 96th percentile for all tight ends in the country. As long as he can regain his pre-injury form, Evans should be the ultimate security blanket for new quarterback Riley Leonard next year.

Injuring his ACL and missing the rest of the season really hindered Evans’ productive and statistics; however, with a full season under his belt this year, he should reach close to 800 plus receiving yards.

Evans’ Collegiate Statistics: 

2021: 2 Receptions for 21 Yards, 0 TDs

2022: 3 Receptions for 39 Yards, 1 TD

2023: 29 Receptions for 422 Yards, 1 TD

2024: TBD

As one can see, 2023 was Evans’ first season being implemented within the offense.

Had he not have injured his knee, he would have put up similar statistics to Mayer during his time with the Irish.

I am looking forward to Evans and his growth at the tight end position as he will be a very integral part of the offensive gameplan this year.