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Gatorade 2017 - 2018: Player of the Year

Football - Illinois

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FOOTBALL

Samson Evans

Quarterback
PRAIRIE RIDGE HS
CRYSTAL LAKE, ILLINOIS
SENIOR
Height: 6-FOOT-1
Press Release

Peak Performance

2092

Rushing yards

38

Rushing touchdowns

610

Passing yards

8

Passing touchdowns
“Samson’s a fantastic football player. He’s deceptively fast, deceptively powerful. We couldn’t tackle him, and he’s been that way the past three years. It’s one of those things where you know he’s going to get the ball, and yet you know you can’t do anything to stop him.”
Jon McLaughlin
Crystal Lake Central Head Coach
excellence star

Athletic Excellence

The 6-foot-1, 200-pound senior quarterback and return man accounted for 2,915 total yards and 47 touchdowns, leading the Wolves to their second straight 14-0 season and a repeat as Class 6A state champions. The 2017 Chicago Sun-Times Player of the Year and two-time IHSFCA All-State selection, Evans ran for 2,092 yards and 38 touchdowns. He also passed for 610 yards and eight touchdowns in addition to piling up 213 return yards along with a touchdown. A four-time Fox Valley All-Conference member, Evans concluded his prep career ranked seventh on the state’s rushing list (6,385 yards) and third in TDs (121).

a graduation cap

Academic Achievement

Evans has maintained a B average in the classroom. He has verbally committed to play football on scholarship at the University of Iowa in the fall of 2018.

first place ribbon

Exemplary Character

Evans volunteers as an intramural leader at his school. “Samson’s a fantastic football player,” said Crystal Lake Central head coach Jon McLaughlin. “He’s deceptively fast, deceptively powerful. We couldn’t tackle him, and he’s been that way the past three years. It’s one of those things where you know he’s going to get the ball, and yet you know you can’t do anything to stop him.”