Take Two: Will Desmond Evans stay in state and ink with Heels?
Take Two returns with a daily offering tackling an issue in the college football landscape. Rivals.com national recruiting analyst Adam Gorney lays out the situation and then receives takes from Rivals.com national recruiting director Mike Farrell and an expert from the Rivals.com network of team sites or a regional analyst.
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THE STORYLINE
Desmond Evans is one of the best defensive ends in the 2020 class and he’s the second-best prospect in the state of North Carolina behind Auburn commit Trenton Simpson.
And now the Sanford (N.C.) Lee County four-star standout has a top-five list.
Florida, Tennessee, Virginia Tech, North Carolina and South Carolina made the cut for Evans, who’s ranked third at weakside defensive end nationally behind only Sav’ell Smalls and Reggie Grimes, who are both uncommitted as well.
For so long, the Tar Heels have been pegged to win out in Evans’ recruitment, especially because he has a good relationship with so many North Carolina commits and because of the job first-year coach Mack Brown has done recruiting top talent to Chapel Hill.
The Tar Heels currently have the No. 16 class in the country - a testament to how well Brown and his staff have done early on in the 2020 recruiting cycle.
Will Evans wind up at North Carolina as well or will a more traditional power be able to convince the high four-star to leave the state?
FIRST TAKE: ADAM FRIEDMAN, MID-ATLANTIC ANALYST
“North Carolina is definitely the leader. I really think it’s more a matter of time until he commits. South Carolina is in a unique position because of their proximity to home and the fact that Will Muschamp is a defensive head coach that uses a four-man front and an odd-front and that’s intriguing to Evans because of his athleticism.
“The family ties and how close he is with a lot of the UNC recruits is going to be really tough to beat.”
SECOND TAKE: MIKE FARRELL, NATIONAL RECRUITING DIRECTOR
“North Carolina is recruiting very well, especially on defense. They’re trying to rebuild from what was a really horrible and depleted roster. There is early playing time available and I’m sure they’re telling him all the right things.
“Some kids just don’t want to go away from home. It could be that he grew up a fan of North Carolina and he wanted to play for them and he feels comfortable and that’s where he’s going to end up going. Before Mack Brown, this probably wouldn’t be a possibility, but he’s such a great recruiter. I could definitely see him spurning the other schools and going to North Carolina.”