Nick Evers 'All In,' Discusses Recruiting Efforts for Florida Gators
At the beginning of this year, Flower Mound (Texas) quarterback Nick Evers had five scholarship offers. The biggest one was from Kansas.
Roughly a third of the way through 2021, Evers' recruitment has made a drastic change for the better. Evers is now a Florida Gators commit, considered the leader of UF's class and a major recruiting source himself. Most recently, he earned an invitation to the upcoming Elite 11 Finals.
"This recruiting process has been just a roller coaster," Evers told Sports Illustrated All-American this week. "You know, all these coaches trying to get a hold of you. So I'm finally locking down my spot and a place I can call home, it's just, it's pretty cool."
Just over a month removed from receiving his UF offer, Evers committed to the 13th program and the first SEC school that came calling with a scholarship. Evers quickly developed a bond with head coach Dan Mullen and quarterbacks coach Garrick McGee, and ultimately saw no reason to wait on linking up with the Gators.
"There's no other place like Florida," said Evers. "Life after football, they set you up, not just on the field but off the field. And coach Mullen, he's known to develop quarterbacks, the 'quarterback whisperer' ... I have aspirations to go to the NFL, but you know, if that doesn't end up working, I'll have a good degree to back up on."
Evers will officially visit Florida during the first recruiting weekend in June after the NCAA lifts the COVID-19 recruiting moratorium. Some coaches from other programs reach out to Evers on occasion, although he admits most have taken a step back and respect that Evers is "all in for Florida." UF is the only school that he plans to officially visit.
On those official visits, Evers will be bringing plenty of talented friends with him. Liberty (Frisco, Texas) wide receiver Evan Stewart, Evers' Texas Flex seven-on-seven teammate, will join him for the June visit. Evers routinely tags fellow recruits on Twitter with Gator emojis and lets them know he wants to team up at the next level. Woodward Academy (Atlanta, Ga.) 2022 running back Damari Alston, Rockwall-Heath (Texas) receiver Jay Fair, John Paul II (Plano, Texas) cornerback Terrance Brooks, and Richland (Texas) 2023 receiver Ashton Cozart are prime examples.
"I'm excited to get up there on official visits. I'm gonna get down there with the other guys like Evan Stewart on my seven-on-seven team and, hopefully, can land all those guys that come over," Evers said.
"Because I'm a quarterback, you know, they want me to recruit. Not just receivers, but the whole program. So, that's really what I've been doing ever since I committed, just been on top of all these guys, so we'll see how it goes."