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Evans leaving Nebraska

I-back's career never returned to superb freshman form

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Posted: Tuesday September 14, 1999 03:26 PM

DeAngelo Evans has carried just 19 times for 74 yards and no touchdowns in two games this season. Stephen Dunn/Allsport

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) - Nebraska's football team has a new look, with running back DeAngelo Evans quitting the squad and coach Frank Solich going with a new quarterback.

Evans, off to a slow start in his junior season with the No. 4 Cornhuskers, missed practice and a team meeting Monday.

"DeAngelo Evans has decided to quit playing football," Solich said at a Tuesday news conference.

It was a difficult decision for Evans and for the team, Solich said. He said he did not think Evans had plans to transfer to another school.

Solich also said Tuesday sophomore Eric Crouch will start at quarterback against Southern Mississippi on Saturday, and junior Bobby Newcombe will start as a receiver and return punts.

Solich said he wants both players, who have vied for the starting spot at quarterback, to be on the field for the Cornhuskers.

The 5-foot-10, 215-pound Evans has had numerous injuries limiting his playing career at Nebraska.

He carried 148 times and gained 776 yards as a true freshman in 1996. But he missed 1997 with a pelvic injury.

His 1998 season also was cut short. He missed the first three games with a knee injury. When he returned to action, he carried the ball 38 times for 218 yards and four touchdowns in three games. But he sat out the rest of the year with an injured big toe and bruised tailbone.

Evans had knee surgery after the 1998 season and had hoped to return to full speed this fall. He regained the starting spot, but in two games this season, he carried just 19 times for 74 yards and no touchdowns.

Evans' decision comes after other players' rumbling over playing time.

Two weeks ago, Solich visited backup quarterback Eric Crouch in Omaha after the sophomore reportedly became upset when junior Bobby Newcombe was named the starter.

Last week, backup I-back Correll Buckhalter, the team's leading rusher last season, left practice for three days, apparently upset over the lack of playing time.

 

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