Cowbell Corner

40 in 40: Why Anthony Evans III will be an important Bulldog in 2025

One of Mississippi State's newest wide receivers has experience returning punts for an SEC championship team and the speed to succeed.
Taylor Hodges|
Georgia Bulldogs wide receiver Anthony Evans III (5) runs after a catch against the Mississippi State Bulldogs in the third quarter at Sanford Stadium.
Georgia Bulldogs wide receiver Anthony Evans III (5) runs after a catch against the Mississippi State Bulldogs in the third quarter at Sanford Stadium. | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

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Mississippi State Bulldogs

There are only 20 days left until Mississippi State takes the field against Southern Miss on August 30 to start the 2025 season.

That also means today marks the halfway point of our 40 most important Bulldogs in 40 days series. Before we get into today’s player, let’s review the coaches and players who have already the list (all names appear alphabetically):

That’s three coaches, six offensive players, 10 defensive players and one specialist so far. Today begins the second half of our list. Some obvious names are still to be added to the above list (ex: no quarterback have appeared, yet) and there might be one or two names that surprise you.

At the end of the season, the goal is that the 40 Bulldogs included in this list end up making positive impacts. That impact may come on offense, defense, special teams, meeting rooms, or locker room.

ICYMI: Notes and observations from Mississippi State's Friday morning practice

Today’s most important Bulldog is an offensive player, but don’t be surprised if his biggest impact comes on special teams.

Who is Anthony Evans III?

Evans is a native of Judson, Texas and was a four-star prospect and was a top 300 recruit nationally by the major recruiting services. He won a state championship his senior at the highest level of Texas high school football. He signed with Georgia after high school and appeared in eight games as a true freshman in 2023. He had four catches for 35 yards and a touchdown. He also one rushing play and returned four punts for 55 yards.

What happened in 2024?

Evans saw his playing time expand as a sophomore, playing in 11 games and catching nine passes for 88 yards and three rushes for 50 yards. He also saw more time returning punts, with 17 returns for 129 yards. After the season, he entered the transfer portal and exchanged one SEC Bulldog mascot for another.

Why will he be important in 2025?

In the limited practice sessions media has been allowed to watch, one consistent thing we’ve seen is the punt and punt return units practice. Every time, Evans has been one of the three or four players catching punts. And with his experience returning punts for a team that competes for national titles, Evans is a leading candidate to be Mississippi State’s punt returner.

He’s also fast. Like, really fast.

There’s an ongoing conversation about if Brenen Thompson or Kelley Jones is the fastest player on the roster, but Evans deserves to be in that conversation. (For whatever it’s worth, he has the second-highest speed rating on Mississippi State’s roster in EA College Football 26.)

There’s a lot of competition at the receiver spot and Evans will see some playing time. That should scare defenses, especially if he’s on the field Thompson and Jordan Mosley (who is also very fast). Throw in a big, tall tight end like Seydou Traore and Blake Shapen should be sleeping at night with a smile.

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Taylor Hodges
TAYLOR HODGES

Award-winning sports editor, writer, columnist, and photographer with 15 years’ experience offering his opinion and insight about the sports world in Mississippi and Texas, but he was taken to Razorback pep rallies at Billy Bob's Texas in Fort Worth before he could walk. Taylor has covered all levels of sports, from small high schools in the Mississippi Delta to NFL games. Follow Taylor on Twitter and Facebook.

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