Want to attack every day with the latest UGA football recruiting info? That’s what the Intel brings. The play sheet today calls for a chat with elite 2021 RB target Evan Pryor.
Evan Pryor has been a popular visitor to Georgia over the last 1.5 years. That seems interesting given that he is a class of 2021 recruit.
But he’s already seen as an elite RB for that cycle. The 4-star recruit picked up his Georgia offer back in May of 2018, but he’d been visiting Georgia for quite sometime before that.
Do you know those students that like to read a few chapters ahead? That’s how Pryor has attacked his recruiting process. He’s been working ahead of the curve for a while now.
He was also at Georgia late last month for that 100-yard fight with the Irish from Notre Dame. Needless to say, that trip left an impression.
“Yeah that trip has definitely stuck with me,” Pryor told DawgNation. “It was just one of those atmospheres that I have never been in. Everybody was just great. It was something that I will always remember.”
Has he been to a better gameday than Athens that night?
“The only comparison I can give to that one was probably the “Whiteout” at Penn State,” Pryor said.
Pryor said when a recruit is on the field in an atmosphere like that it can make them start to visualize what it would like to be a Bulldog.
Or at least that’s what he did.
“I start thinking about putting myself in that offense,” Pryor said. “Even when we go on the field pregame. It is just like ‘yeah I could see myself here’ or looking around up into the stands like you shake your head in agreement that this is something you could possibly do. So I definitely put myself into the player’s shoes that night.”
How would he have handled it?
“Probably would have been nervous and out of my mind,” he said. “But sometimes with nerves comes great play, too. I would have done my thing as well.”
Evan Pryor: His thoughts on Georgia
The nation’s No. 5 junior RB (247Sports Composite) has already made a bunch of trips this fall: Florida, Georgia, Ohio State and Penn State so far.
That night in Georgia seems like something that requires a visual.
“Very limited words to explain it,” Pryor said. “I say exciting when I get asked the question. It was just one of those atmospheres where everyone was excited. People I didn’t even know there were jumping together and singing along with the songs. It was just great overall.”
Did the trip help Georgia’s chances?
“Oh, it definitely helped,” Pryor said. “Because I think seeing a place on gameday gives the school a whole different perspective on how you see it. So seeing the stadium like that and all of the campus and all of the celebrities that come back and support their team as well. It definitely gave them a boost in their chances with me.”
The message he hears from running backs coach Dell McGee does not dawdle at the line. Pryor said McGee told him he will only take one RB in the class of 2021 at this time.
“He talks about the depth and the depth chart a lot,” Pryor said. ” He sat down with me and broke down with me how many backs they are bringing in and who will be gone by the time I get there. He goes over the sets they run as well.”
Pryor noticed D’Andre Swift get the ball. But he also noticed senior tailback Brian Herrien in tandem with the All-American candidate.
“He got a lot of touches as well and that’s a system at Georgia where everyone can ‘eat’ at and that’s his main pitch to me,” Pryor said while expanding upon what he hears from McGee.
The 5-foot-10, 196-pound junior also hails from North Carolina. That state has been pretty receptive to UGA pitches for its elite running backs Todd Gurley, Keith Marshall and Zamir White. That fact is not lost on the standout from William Amos High in Cornelius.
That’s north of Charlotte, but still in Mecklenberg County lined up tight near Lake Norman.
“Coach McGee made a comparison to all the other Georgia running backs who came from North Carolina,” Pryor said. “They are all different from Todd Gurley to Zamir White to Keith Marshall and all those guys. They always come to Georgia and become great backs. Coach McGee always lets me know that I am a priority with him for the 2021 class.”
He said he talks to McGee about once a week.
“We have a great relationship,” he said.
Evan Pryor: A few more things to know
Pryor also detailed a pretty interesting relationship. He said he’s in frequent contact with 5-star junior QB Caleb Williams. They speak weekly and are already involved in a 2021 recruit group text thread.
“Just keeping each other up-to-date on our recruitments and just our daily lives,” Pryor said. “I consider him a good friend of mine.”
Williams is Georgia’s top quarterback target for the 2021 class. Those two are talking about playing together at a lot of spots. They were at Oregon at the same time this summer. Williams even dropped a scouting report on him about the UGA trip.
“He said he had been to a game before and said it was cool but I didn’t think it was going to be like that, though,” Pryor said. “That was way past what I was thinking.”
Pryor is a speed back. He’d be a “Lightning” type if wound up signing with the Bulldogs. So let’s zip through a few core subjects regarding his recruiting at a pace he’s used to.
- He has 404 yards on 49 carries in 2019. Those have gone for 8.2 yards per attempt and four touchdowns, including an 82-yard burst.
- Pryor had 912 yards and 10 scores as a sophomore, including another 91-yard run.
- Look for him to cut down his top schools list to under 10 teams by the end of his junior year. Or early January at the latest.
- Interesting quote: “By the time spring rolls around I’ll have my five officials set and by that time I can make a decision after that,” he said.
- Interesting quote, Part II: “I’ll be committed before my senior year,” he said.
- He said to go ahead and expect UGA to make that next cutdown.
- Alabama and Wisconsin have come after him pretty hard since that Sept. 1 date when schools were able to start directly contacting prospects in the 2021 class.
- What does he like best about Georgia?: “The way they compete,” Pryor said. “They are almost in the final four every year. They are always competing for national titles and you always see the guys competing for national titles going to the NFL as well. So, there’s a lot there that I like about Georgia.”
Pryor has put on about 15 pounds since his sophomore season. It has granted him the ability to slip through and run through more tackles as a junior. He’s improved his pass blocking. His junior film now shows his running more between the tackles.
“That something I really keyed on during this off-season and something that I feel I am doing great so far this year,” Pryor said.
Want to see what that looks like? Check out his early junior reel below. The next clip after that will be his sophomore season highlight tape.