A Homecoming for a Bobcat Legend

It has been 17 years since one of the greatest Texas State football players has been to San Marcos.

And in the spirit of Homecoming, a tradition of alumni and former players coming back for one special game in the fall, Fred Evans will be at Bobcat Stadium once again.

Evans, a former All-American who played in more than 90 career games in the NFL, will be at Saturday’s Homecoming game against Southern Miss. He will have an in-game recognition on the field, waving to fans in a stadium that will look much different than the last time he stepped foot in it.

The Chicago native played for Texas State in 2004 and 2005. After two seasons at College of Dupage, he joined the Bobcats when it was still a Division I-AA program (now called FCS).

But in his last year, he was a central piece to a defense that nearly knocked off Texas A&M in College Station, had a perfect record at home in the regular season, and hosted a Division I-AA semifinal game – along with two other playoff games – at Bobcat Stadium. 

The Texas State crowds were sellouts in the playoffs. The energy brought forth by Bobcat Nation that season is what kept Evans and his teammates going during their historic run.

“The fans of Texas State are really good fans,” said Evans. “The bigger the moment, the bigger you step up for it. The bigger the fan base, the more I felt like it was my time to really showcase who I am and what I can do out there.”

While helping the team nearly reach the national championship as well as claim a share of the Southland Conference championship, Evans was named the conference defensive player of the year and All-American by multiple publications.

The 2005 season, in some ways, solidified the idea of moving up from Division I-AA to Division I-A (now known as FBS) seven years later. They won 11 games in 2005, which is still the most wins in the program’s Division I history, and finished the season No. 4 in the country. 

“Being for real for real, coming from out of town, I didn’t really understand the magnitude of what we were able to accomplish while we were there,” said Evans. “But we pretty much changed the direction of the whole program going forward.”

Evans enrolled at Texas State before David Bailiff, former national champion when he played for Texas State (then Southwest Texas State in the early 1980s), was hired in February 2004.

When Evans signed with Texas State, he was an offensive lineman. He had played offensive and defensive line in high school at Morgan Park in Chicago, but he was only an offensive lineman in junior college. By the time Bailiff and his coaching staff worked with him in the spring of 2004, it was apparent that Evans was best suited for the defensive line at the new level. He went on to earn Southland Conference Newcomer of the Year honors in his first season as a Bobcat as well as all-conference first team.

Bailiff always saw something different in Evans, and that is one of the reasons why Evans enjoys coaching in his post-playing days. He coaches kids of all ages in football, specifically defensive line, in addition to his job as the athletic director at Bronzeville Charter Academy School in Chicago.

“We were very, very close,” said Evans about his relationship with Bailiff. “He was more of a father figure to me. Seeing how I was down there by myself, and he had just gotten the job (in 2004). Once we became close, that’s when we started to take off. He always wanted me to be respectful, be honest, and play football as fast as you can.”

Of course, the relationship reached its peak when the team did something special in 2005. However, during that season, Evans and his teammates may not have realized what they accomplished. It’s only years later they understand the impact of how good they were and what they brought to Texas State University.

“First and foremost, we had a really, really good team,” said Evans. “It was a great team. When you have such great players – myself, (quarterback and Walter Payton Award finalist) Barrick Nealy, (wide receiver) Markee White, the list goes on – but it doesn’t seem when you’re doing it that it is astonishing until you look back it. You’re just going game by game, so it’s not like you’re looking at the overall picture. We were compiling wins, week by week, and when you look back, you say, ‘Oh shoot. We actually did things out there.’”

Evans has been able to watch a few Texas State games this year in between being with his young daughter in Chicago and watching his son play football in the Boston area. He has taken special notice of his former station on the field.

“They have a high motor,” said Evans about the Bobcat defensive line this year. “They run to the ball hard. Those are the two qualities you have to have to be an effective defensive lineman. When you run to the ball, good things happen.”

And the defensive line is a small piece to what Evans sees in one of the top defenses in the Sun Belt Conference.

“They play hard, and they play fast – but they play fast together. A lot of times, you can tell when defenses are in tune with one another or when there is poor communication. They play like they overly communicate. Everyone appears to understand their assignment and gaps.”

When Evans walks through the South End Zone Complex on Saturday, making his way through the halls donning his name and other Bobcat greats, he will be excited to see what Texas State has grown into from an atmosphere perspective. He experienced the difference a Bobcat fan base can make in the performance on the field and hard work on the days in between. Evans hopes the fans continue to support the Bobcats through it all.

“Stand together, stay together," said Evans. "Support the players that are out there. Whether it be friends, family, classmates – go to the games for the players and university. Support the players that are going to practice every day and working hard to be out there and compete at a high level. It makes a big difference when you have unwavering fan support.”