By Tyler Devine

IOWA CITY, Iowa – Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz and his staff saw something in Samson Evans that caused them to extend the Crystal Lake, Ill. native a scholarship before anyone else in the Big Ten.

Evans has since received offers from Syracuse and Iowa State, but the one from Iowa will always stand out to him.

“It definitely means a lot," said Evans, who is a high school junior. "For them to notice what I do on and off the field meant a lot to me and it still does. They’re still at the top of my list no doubt. Going forward that’s something that really sticks in my mind that they saw something in me before no one else did.”

Iowa has one advantage in its quest to land the 6-foot-1, 190-pound Evans that other schools don't have. Evans' close friend and high school teammate, offensive lineman Jeff Jenkins, committed to Iowa on Jan. 22 while the two were visiting Iowa City together.

Playing together at the collegiate level has been a lifelong goal for Evans and Jenkins.

The 6-foot-4, 260-pound Jenkins has been pushing Evans to commit to Iowa since their visit.

"We have lunch together every day and he’s telling me I better be committing soon," Evans said. "It’s definitely out of love, it’s not annoying at all. We’ve been friends since we were six or seven years old and it’s just the bond that we have that we can joke around like that. It’s definitely one of our goals to play together in college from when we were younger but I guess it all comes down to in the end where I feel I fit in best.

“Ideally I’d want to commit before the season starts. But if it doesn’t feel right or I’m not 100 percent sure I’ll carry it into the season. I don’t think it’ll effect me if I don’t commit before but I do feel that it would be more beneficial if I did commit before.”

Jenkins is one two players committed to Iowa's 2018 class, the other being Wisconsin tight end Mike Bruner.

The focus now shifts to the 2018 class with Iowa having signed 22 players in its 2017 recruiting class on Feb. 1.

Evans plays quarterback for his high school team, but which position he will play in college is uncertain. If it were up to him, Evans would prefer to remain on offense.

"The last time I talked to (the Iowa coaches) two weeks ago they basically just said they don’t have a set position for me," Evans said. "They just told me that wherever I wanted to start then they would start me there and my ideal spot would be on offense somewhere so they’d start me out there and figure me out from there.

"I definitely want the ball in my hands. If I could play quarterback that would be the ideal situation but just being on offense, being slot or anything would be phenomenal.”

Evans also has offers from Army, Ball State, Central Michigan and Illinois.

Jones' top five unchanged: In about two months, the Iowa coaches will find out if their work to land of one of the most coveted recruits in Illinois has paid dividends.

Four-star receiver Micah Jones, a native of Gurnee, Ill., is planning to announce his commitment in April and has Iowa among his top five schools, along with Notre Dame, Michigan State, Illinois and Northwestern.

"My top five has not changed," Jones said.

The 6-foot-5, 196-pound Jones said he still is trying to figure out which of the five stand out the most to him.

Jones is also waiting to see who Iowa hires as its new receivers coach after parting ways with Bobby Kennedy in early January. Jones said he speaks frequently with new Iowa offensive coordinator Brian Ferentz and recruiting coordinator Kelvin Bell.

"(Who my position coach is) means a lot," Jones said. "It has to be someone I can see myself being with for four years as I would be in contact with him a lot.

"I get in touch as much as I can. I'm in touch with coach Ferentz and the recruiting coordinator now since the receivers coach is gone."

Here are several other names to watch in the 2018 class:

Name: Saybein Clark

Height-weight-position: 6-1, 195, athlete (being recruited at DB)

Hometown: Sioux City, Iowa

Star rating: Two

Notable offers: Iowa and Iowa State

 

Name: Dallas Craddieth

Height-weight-position: 6-1, 180, safety

Hometown: Florissant, Mo.

Star rating: Three

Notable offers: Iowa, Illinois, Iowa State, Memphis, Missouri, Northwestern, Syracuse and Wisconsin

 

Name: Trevor Downing

Height-weight-position: 6-4, 270, offensive lineman

Hometown: Creston, Iowa

Star rating: N/A

Notable offers: Iowa, Iowa State, Minnesota and Missouri

 

Name: Cameron McGrone

Height-weight-position: 6-1, 210, linebacker

Hometown: Indianapolis, Ind.

Star rating: Four

Notable offers: Iowa, Bowling Green, Cincinnati, Indiana, Iowa State, Louisville, Miami (Ohio), Nebraska, Northwestern, Purdue, Syracuse, Central Florida and Wisconsin

 

Name: Quincy Patterson

Height-weight-position: 6-3, 220, quarterback

Hometown: Chicago, Ill.

Star rating: Three

Notable offers: Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa State, Mississippi State, New Mexico, North Carolina State, Northern Illinois, Northwestern, Penn State, Syracuse, Toledo, Vanderbilt, Virginia, Virginia Tech and Wisconsin

 

Name: Jack Sanborn

Height-weight-position: 6-2, 210, linebacker

Hometown: Lake Zurich, Ill.

Star rating: Three

Notable offers: Iowa, Bowling Green, Duke, Indiana, Iowa State, Northern Illinois, Northwestern, Syracuse and Wisconsin

 

Name: Noah Shannon

Height-weight-position: 6-2, 285, defensive tackle 

Hometown: Oswego, Ill.

Star rating: N/A

Notable offers: Iowa, Central Michigan, Indiana, Iowa State and Northern Illinois

 

Name: I’shawn Stewart

Height-weight-position: 5-11, 165, receiver 

Hometown: Bolingbrook, Ill.

Star rating: Three

Notable offers: Iowa, Illinois, Miami (Ohio), Nevada, Northern Illinois and Toledo

 

Name: Reese Taylor

Height-weight-position: 5-10, 175, receiver

Hometown: Indianapolis, Ind.

Star rating: N/A

Notable offers: Iowa, Ball State, Minnesota and Toledo

 

Name: Tyrone Tracy

Height-weight-position: 6-0, 182, running back

Hometown: Indianapolis, Ind.

Star rating: Three

Notable offers: Iowa, Ball State, Bowling Green, Central Michigan, Cinicinnati, Illinois, Navy, Northwestern, Tennessee and Vanderbilt

 

Name: Trevor Trout

Height-weight-position: 6-3, 295, defensive tackle

Hometown: St. Louis, Mo.

Star rating: Four

Notable offers: Iowa, Arkansas, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa State, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisville, Louisiana State, Miami (Ohio), Minnesota, Mississippi State, Missouri, Nebraska, North Carolina State, Northern Illinois, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Penn State, South Carolina, Syracuse, Tennessee, Texas, Texas A&M, UCLA and Southern California

 

Name: Carlos Vettorello

Height-weight-position: 6-4, 260, offensive lineman

Hometown: Detroit, Mich.

Star rating: Two

Notable offers: Iowa, Bowling Green, Central Michigan, Eastern Michigan, Iowa State, Ohio, Syracuse, Toledo and Western Michigan

 

Name: John Waggoner

Height-weight-position: 6-5, 230, defensive end 

Hometown: West Des Moines, Iowa

Star rating: Three

Notable offers: Iowa, Iowa State and Michigan