Kyle Evans set to prove he isn’t just The Little Engine That Could

Throughout Kyle Evans career, he has always been seen as an underdog. Standing at 5-6, 175 lbs., many people questioned whether his frame was suited for tailback coming out of high school. After playing a secondary role in the team’s run game in 2015 & 16, it was unclear if he would ever evolve into a feature back. And following a nasty hip injury in spring ball last year, his football future was in limbo

However just like his former teammate and fellow underdog Phillip Lindsay, he kept on fighting. Following Lindsay’s departure from CU, the battle for reps at running back was wide open. Between himself, redshirt freshman Alex Fontenot, junior Beau Bisharat and senior Donovan Lee, the water was somewhat murky on who was going to start.

After the team opted to bring in graduate transfer Travon McMillan from Virginia Tech, things became a little bit clearer. Adding another body to the running back room - and one with ACC experience to boot - really caught the attention of everybody and forced them to be their best.

“When Travon came in he brought that competition, he kind of ramped it up between the running back group because there was a lot of uncertainty about who was going to play, and what the rotation would be. So with that uncertainty comes a lot of competition and a lot of ‘what can I do to set myself apart?’ So bringing him in really brought [that competition] out of Alex, myself, Beau, and all the running backs to be the best that we can be.”

But after fighting through the competition and the grueling days of spring ball and summer camp to finally get his chance to shine, Evans was named as co-starter at running back alongside McMillan. Finally, the little engine that could is getting a chance to start in his final year at Colorado. And he’s not satisfied with merely starting, either. Although he was ecstatic about the news when it came out, Evans is ready to go out and show how he’s grown during his time in Boulder and that he truly belongs.

“I talked to my mom about a couple of times. This’ll be the first time that I’m co-starting in a game and a college game so for me just going in with a chip on my shoulder understanding that I have something to prove because there’s not necessarily a lot of tape on me - particularly at running back - so just going out there and showing what over the last four, five years at CU I’ve been taught through coach Hagan, Chiv and all the coaches on offense and how they’ve built me to be where I’m at right now, and all the other running backs as well, we’ll be ready to show out.”

Even though Evans is co-starting for the time being, with a back-by-committee approach in place and Mike MacIntyre not wanting to use all four backs every game, he must show out to keep his role. However, after encountering countless external and internal roadblocks throughout his college career, Evans is finally set to show he’s the player everyone knows he can be - quick, shifty, versatile, and full of passion.