After a record setting sophomore campaign, former Texas A&M wide receiver Mike Evans became the seventh overall pick in the 2014 NFL Draft Thursday night after being drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Evans’ selection made him the first Aggie wide receiver to be drafted inside the top 10 since 1967.
Joining former teammate and fellow Aggie Jake Matthews – who was chosen sixth overall — inside the top 10, Evans became the fifth A&M player in the last four NFL Drafts to be drafted in the top eight picks.
By selecting Evans, Tampa Bay adds another 6-foot-5, 230 pound receiver to its roster alongside 10-year veteran Vincent Jackson. Jackson, a three-time Pro Bowler, has both size and a skillset that are almost identical to Evans’. The pair will look to improve a Buccaneer offense that was last in the league in passing in 2013, averaging only 176.2 yards per game.
Evans started all 26 games of his collegiate career after only playing one year of high school football at Galveston Ball.
During his second and final season wearing the Maroon and White, Evans broke the A&M record for receiving yards in a single game with his 270 yard performance against then top-ranked Alabama at Kyle Field in 2013. He then broke his own record a few weeks later with his four touchdown, 287 yard performance against the Auburn Tigers, who would go on to play for the BCS National Championship.
Evans also set the A&M single season record for receiving yards after accumulating 1,394 on 69 receptions, averaging 20.2 yards per catch in 2013.
Evans’ 12 touchdowns during the 2013 season tied him for the school record set by Jeff Fuller in 2010, and helped him become a finalist for the Biletnikoff Award-the annual award given to the country’s best receiver.