The journey to Craig Evans' announcement Friday at the Offense-Defense Bowl in Orlando was in no form or fashion linear. After Bret Bielema left for Arkansas in December 2012, Evans decommitted, then reaffirmed a soft commitment, and was generally around a B-level of sure that he was going to be a Badger. But the process from soft to solid verbal was lengthy.
The good news? We can finally breathe, as the four-star defensive tackle from Sun Prairie announced that he has firmed up his intentions to be a Badger. Per Evan Flood of 247 Sports, who was in Orlando for Evans' commitment:
"I'm committing to Wisconsin," Evans told Evan Watkins of 247sports. "It felt like home, it's home to me. I felt like God brought me there for a reason. I think it's a special place. I want to be something different. That's why I chose them."
"They see me coming in and playing immediately next year," he said. "They think I can start as a freshman or redshirt freshman. That meant a lot to me. They see a lot in me."
Evans joins Jeremy Patterson as pieces hoping to shore up a defensive line that is losing every starter on the front three this offseason. Evans definitely has the physicality to potentially be tabbed to replace Beau Allen at nose tackle from the LSU game onward.
He chose Wisconsin over offers from Arkansas, Nebraska, Michigan, Pittsburgh and UCLA. Michigan State came the closest, but ultimately fell short in its efforts to flip Evans.
Here's Top247 Defensive Tackle Craig Evans throwing up the 'W' #Badgers #OnWisconsin pic.twitter.com/Bixpl9RFmk
— Evan Flood (@Evan_Flood) January 4, 2014