Zach Evans wants the ball and brings plenty of attitude to the Ole Miss running backs room

The Ole Miss run game may be the one area that is of very little concern heading into Saturday’s season opener and for good reason.

That reason would be Zach Evans, who is the de-facto starting running back for Ole Miss, and the passion and attitude he is bringing to Vaught-Hemingway Stadium this weekend.

Evans will be playing his first game as an SEC running back after transferring in from TCU this past offseason. While Troy is not an SEC opponent the emotions leading up to Saturday are running high for Evens all the same.

“I’m very pissed and angry” Evans said. “I’m ready to display that type of feeling on Troy.

When Evans was pressed for clarification he gladly explained further his attitude into every game day.

“It’s going to get worse every Saturday. But it’s going to be worse for Troy because they the first game.”

Evans said it with a smile on his face but there was no getting his emotions mixed up. He intends to run hard and run angry all afternoon.

An Ole Miss running attack that starts off with that type of emotion from Evans is not a bad thing. The attitude is something that could set the tone for an offense that aims to continuing being one of the most explosive in the country.

Evans will not be required to shoulder the load all by himself in the Ole Miss backfield, though he may want to.

Fellow transfer Ulysses Bentley IV and true freshman Quinshon Judkins are slotted behind Evans in the freshly released Ole Miss depth chart Monday evening. A second three-headed monster in as many seasons could be forming with the new trio.

That requires the wealth to be spread as equally as possible, despite Evans saying with a smile he would prefer 30 carries a game in Tuesday’s press conference.

Adapting to not being the true bellcow of an offense’s run game is nothing new to Houston, Texas native, who had to split carries with upperclassmen during his playing days at North Shore Senior High School.

This season should be a walk in the park for Evans in that regard.

“The whole running back room (is) hungry,” Evans said. “Everyone got to compete everyday. So, we come out here and we do the best that we can. We ain’t got no certain rotation or certain order. We ain’t got just a lead horseman. Right now we’re just going in and doing what we’re trained, what we’re taught. We rely on our discipline and going to go from there.”

It will be full circle moment for Evans when he takes the field on Saturday.

Evans was recruited by Ole Miss out of high school but he ultimately chose to stay in-state and be a Horned Frog. He made the move to Mississippi in the offseason as part of the Rebels top transfer class.

Being an Ole Miss running back is kind of an ‘in the family’ type thing for Evans. His cousin D’Vaughn Pennamon carried the football as a Rebel from 2016 to 2019.

During those years Evans would be in the stands at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium watching Pennamon, wanting to do the exact same thing in an Ole Miss uniform one day. That day is Saturday.

“It’s real surreal to me,” Evans said. “I’ve kind of taken it personal because my cousin, D’Vaughn Pennamon, he used to go here. Me coming to his games, watching how he played and how he attacked the field everday. It make me want to go out there and do better than how he was.”

Watch Evans’ full post-practice interview below.