Former Ben Davis football star Chris Evans will be the fourth Ben Davis alumnus to appear in the NFL Super Bowl when he and his Cincinnati Bengals face the Los Angles Rams on February 13.

Evans and the Bengals advanced via a 27-24 overtime win at Kansas City Sunday in the AFC Championship game. Evans returned one kickoff for 26 yards and had one tackle in the game.

Evans is the fourth BD graduate to play in the Super Bowl, following the steps of kicker Morten Andersen, defensive back Corey Harris and receiver Tandon Doss. Assistant coach Justin Faires hopes to attend the Super Bowl in two weeks, just like he did in 2013 to watch Doss.

“I have so many great memories of him,” Faires said of Evans. “He pretty much single handedly won the Center Grove Regional in 2014 which led to an eventual state title. We were in a two minute hurry mode but we ran the ball with him because he was just as likely to score on a run vs a soft look than we were throwing it. And he did score on a run.”

Faires was the offensive coordinator while Evans played here. Evans also was a track star and played basketball for the Giants his freshman and sophomore years.

On the football field, Evans was nearly unstoppable. He was known for his work ethic while playing here and would often be found in the weight room on weekends. Faires remembers him as an excellent team leader.

“The Pike game that same year (during the 2014 state season) when we had to come back on Saturday: everyone was  little dejected on Friday night because we had scored 50 and might lose and he texted me at midnight that night and said ‘what time you want us in tomorrow to go over what our plan is to win this game’,” said Faires, who has seen Evans play twice in person this year. “Next morning every offensive player was in the meeting room ready. He was just a great leader and person.”

Evans played collegiately at the University of Michigan and is a rookie for the Bengals. This will be Cincinnati’s first Super Bowl appearance since the 1989 season. Evans’ younger brother Drew is a sophomore linebacker for Ben Davis.

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