James Franklin says Omari Evans has 'got all the tools'

Penn State coach James Franklin is a big fan of wide receiver Omari Evans. The former high school quarterback was recruited as a wide receiver, his natural position, and has “all the tools” to make an impact for the Nittany Lions.

Evans might’ve done enough in the spring game to warrant some serious playing time this fall. Franklin appreciated his young pass catcher’s effort in the Blue-White Game.

But more development is needed for Evans and everyone else. Spring was a good start.

“Yeah, he kind of showed up and was, in some ways, like a track guy,” Franklin said. “Now he’s done a really good job in the weight room. He’s strong and he’s physical, and he’s getting more and more confident day by day. As you guys know, we’ve talked about it a lot, we need somebody to step up in that third wide receiver role. But the last week and a half we moved him into that spot and obviously today was something to build on. There’s no doubt about it. 

“He’s got all the tools. We got to grind through it and continue to get him good at his craft because to your point, you know, he mainly played quarterback in high school and was mainly like an athletic quarterback but he’s excited and we have the talent in the room currently. We just got to grind through it and we can’t throw enough.”

Franklin doubled down on the work to be done throughout the summer, something that could benefit Evans in the long run.

“Our quarterbacks, wide receivers, tight ends, running backs, we cannot throw enough all summer,” Franklin said. “And I do think you know, with having the weight room now that we didn’t have last year, having it wide open all summer, no matter what the weather is, to be able to throw is going to be really valuable for us.”

If Evans is constantly working on his own and with the team ahead of fall camp, he could breakout in 2023.

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As a member of the Class of 2022, Evans was a three-star recruit out of Killeen (Texas) Shoemaker, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He was the No. 79 overall prospect in the state, the No. 81 wide receiver in the class and the No. 513 overall prospect in the class.