By Brandon C. Williams
The Post Newspaper Editor
Long before Mike Evans became an All-American, a first-round pick and the first receiver in NFL history to record seven straight 1,000-yard seasons to begin a career, Andrew Callis had a feeling his then-converted basketball player had potential to be special on the gridiron.
Callis was the receivers coach at Galveston Ball in 2010 when Evans, who was already regarded as a top-end college hoops prospect, decided to give football a whirl. At 6’5, 180 pounds, Evans looked the part, yet many wondered if he could play the part.
“He was a great athlete in high school, but watching him work, you could tell that he wanted to be better than he already was,” said Callis of Evans, who will start at receiver for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in tonight’s Super Bowl 55 against the Kansas City Chiefs. “As a football player, he was intense and eager to learn and work toward mastering the receiver position.”
It was Callis who was one of the sages that turned Evans from basketball to football. The work Callis put in with his gifted young wideout resulted in Evans catching 26 passes for 750 yards (28.8 yards per catch) during his senior season, serving as a highlight for a 1-9 Tors squad.
The potential was more than enough for Texas A&M to roll the dice on Evans, offering him a scholarship during his visit to College Station. Although he wasn’t the featured signing of the Aggies’ 2011 recruiting class, Evans — who redshirted as a freshman — was able to establish a rapport with another member of A&M’s class, quarterback Johnny Manziel.
By the following fall, Evans and Manziel had become the scourge of Southeastern Conference defenses as the duo became the nation’s most potent passing combination. Over the next two seasons, the pair rewrote the Texas A&M record book while also piling up individual honors.
“The chemistry he and Manziel had seemed almost innate,” said Sam Khan Jr., who worked as a college football writer for ESPN from 2012-21. “I think many folks — even Manziel himself — would credit Evans’ on-field prowess as a huge contributor to Manziel’s A&M success and (2012) Heisman Trophy win.”
The intensity that Callis saw in Evans was seen firsthand by Khan.
“I’ll always remember standing on the sideline in 2013 when the Aggies lost a close game to Auburn at Kyle Field and Evans was on the sideline, screaming in frustration.” said Khan. “He had a few choice words mixed in, but he was screaming because he knew defeat was imminent, but as time ticked off the clock, there wasn’t much he could do about it.”
Evans was drafted seventh overall in the 2014 NFL draft, opening a new chapter in his journey that will see him as the 16th player from Galveston County to play in a Super Bowl. He is in excellent position to do what the previous 15 players from the area were unable to do: score a touchdown on Super Sunday.
“His rise has been something to watch,” said Christopher Lyke, who has covered high school football throughout the state for the past three decades.
