Ethan Gray Evans (born July 19, 2001) is an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

punter for the

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...

of the National Football League (NFL). He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

at Wingate and was selected in the seventh round of the

2023 NFL draft The 2023 NFL Draft will be the 88th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players. The draft is scheduled to be held in the plaza outside of Union Station in Kansas City, Missouri, on April 27–29, ...

by the Rams.

Early years

Evans was born on July 19, 2001, in

Mount Airy, North Carolina Mount Airy is a city in Surry County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 10,611. History Mount Airy was settled in the 1750s as a stagecoach stop on the road between Winston-Salem, North Carolina an ...

, and grew up there. He attended North Surry High School and played

and

track Track or Tracks may refer to: Routes or imprints * Ancient trackway, any track or trail whose origin is lost in antiquity * Animal track, imprints left on surfaces that an animal walks across * Desire path, a line worn by people taking the shorte ...

, additionally being a member of the

National Honor Society The National Honor Society (NHS) is a nationwide organization for high school students in the United States and outlying territories, which consists of many chapters in high schools. Selection is based on four criteria: scholarship (academic achi ...

. He set several school kicking records, including for longest made

field goal A field goal (FG) is a means of scoring in gridiron football. To score a field goal, the team in possession of the ball must place kick, or drop kick, the ball through the goal, i.e., between the uprights and over the crossbar. The entire ba ...

(51 yards), most career field goals (17) and most career

extra points The conversion, try (American football, also known as a point(s) after touchdown, PAT, or (depending on the number of points) extra point/2-point conversion), or convert (Canadian football) occurs immediately after a touchdown during which the sc ...

(77). He twice was named the Western Piedmont 2A Conference Specialist of the Year and was invited to the state's East–West All-Star Game after graduating, becoming the first North Surry player to participate in the event in 23 years and only the eighth overall. Evans committed to play

for the Division II

Wingate Bulldogs The Wingate Bulldogs are the athletic teams that represent Wingate University, located in Wingate, North Carolina, in NCAA Division II intercollegiate sports. The Bulldogs compete as members of the South Atlantic Conference for all 22 varsity spo ...

College career

Evans ended up becoming one of the all-time best special teams players at Wingate, in his stint spanning from the 2019 season to 2022. He was their starting punter and handled kickoff duties in all four seasons, additionally handling field goals and extra points as a

senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

. Evans had his best season as a

, posting 67 kickoffs for 4,180 yards with a 62.4 average and 44 touchbacks, and 77 punts for 3,518 yards, averaging 45.69 yards per punt, a total that ranked second-best in the NCAA Division II. He additionally had 39 punts inside the 20 and 30 that went more than 50 yards, and went 10-for-18 on field goals with a long of 41, as well as 43-of-44 on extra points. Evans twice was named the national player of the week by D2Football.com and was named first-team all-conference, all-region, and a D2CCA first-team All-American. He also was named first-team All-American by Associated Press (AP), being one of three Wingate players to earn the honor that year. Evans finished his career at Wingate having appeared in 39 games and made 186 punts for 8,027 yards (averaging 43.2 yards per punt) with a long of 72 yards. He had 47 fair catches, 53 punts of more than 50 yards and 89 inside the 20-yard line. Additionally, on kickoffs, he posted 213 kicks for 13,230 yards (an average of 62.1) with 120 touchbacks. Evans was invited to the Hula Bowl and was also one of only four Division II players to be chosen for the East–West Shrine Bowl in 2023.

Professional career

Evans was selected in the seventh round (223rd overall) of the

by the

, being the highest-selected Division II player in that draft and only the second Wingate Bulldog to ever be drafted. He was also chosen in the tenth round (73rd overall) of the 2023 USFL draft by the

Pittsburgh Maulers Pittsburgh Maulers may refer to: * Pittsburgh Maulers (1984), United States Football League team * Pittsburgh Maulers (2022) The Pittsburgh Maulers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The Maulers compet ...

. In Week 11 of the 2023 season, Evans was named

National Football Conference The National Football Conference (NFC) is one of the two conferences of the National Football League (NFL), the highest professional level of American football in the United States. The NFC and its counterpart, the American Football Conference ...

Special Teams Player of the Week, the first Ram to be awarded a player of the week recognition in the season. In the 2023 season, Evans had 63 punts for 3,101 yards for a 49.22 average.

References

External links

Los Angeles Rams bioWingate Bulldogs bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Evans, Ethan 2001 births Living people Wingate Bulldogs football players American football punters American football placekickers People from Mount Airy, North Carolina Players of American football from North Carolina Los Angeles Rams players