Evans returning to Iowa football for one more season
When Joe Evans arrived in Iowa City in the fall of 2018, he was a 210 pound linebacker just looking to work his way into the mix on special teams and make a different in the Hawkeye program.
Fast forward to the start 2023 and the Ames native has decided to return for his Covid year and spend one final season as part of the Iowa football team. Evans announced that he would be returning for another season today and that will certainly cushion the blow of Lukas Van Ness leaving early for the National Football League.
It was back in the spring of 2019 when Evans first made his mark on the Iowa roster. The Hawkeyes were low on edge rushers and the coaches asked him to give it a try and they quickly discovered that he might have a chance to help the Iowa defense in that role. That season playing as an edge rusher in the “Raider” package, Evans contributed four quarterbacks sacks to the cause.
As he continued to grow in his role, he also added weight to his frame. Eventually he reached nearly 250 pounds and became more than a situational rusher off the edge. This past season, Evans was a three down player, starting all 13 games for the Hawkeyes. He finished this season with 40 tackles, 8 tackles for loss, including 6 quarterback sacks. He and Van Ness has led Iowa the past two seasons with 13 total quarterback sacks.
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Iowa will now return two starters up front in Evans and defensive tackle Logan Lee. There is also a chance that Noah Shannon, Iowa’s other starting defensive tackle, will return for another season. Shannon said during bowl prep that he was going to be speaking with head coach Kirk Ferentz after returning home from the Music City Bowl. Deontae Craig, who led Iowa with 6.5 sacks this past season, is expected to the starter at the other defensive end position.
For more on Iowa’s 2023 roster, check out our Football Scholarship Distribution Chart.
