Interview with Overlooked 2018 Illinois QB Evan Sullivan

Written by Ryan Wright

Twitter: @RyanWrightRNG

With sports, especially at the high school level, not all opportunities are the same for talented players across the country and with a short timeline. The scope of opportunities on the gridiron widens along the outside and down to the trenches but narrows tremendously in the backfield with limited snaps to go around at quarterback. During the 2017 season at Chicago’s Brother Rice High School, snaps were split in the pocket for Evan Sullivan, but even during a scaled back season he showed his growing talents.

Sullivan’s stat line during his senior year was highlighted by two starts completing 51-of-80 passes for 463 yards with three passing scores and rushed for 81 yards making two trips to the end zone. His ability to sling the ball around the yard is backed by former NFL quarterback Jeff Christensen. The former Cincinnati Bengals, Philadelphia Eagles, and Cleveland Browns field general is now a QB coach in Illinois helping pass his knowledge of the game on to the next generations. Christensen has worked with Sullivan for years. When contacted about Sullivan’s talents, Christensen had high praise stating, “Evan is a tireless worker whose best years are definitely ahead of him. Like so many kids he’s physically starting to fill out, to the point that his arm is substantially stronger than it was eight months ago.”

Due to a lack of overall game snaps, college coaches have overlooked the 6-1, 185 pound, Class of 2018 recruit. With a 4.1 GPA and a 31 scored on his ACT, interest has come in from high achieving collegiate programs like Washington with unofficial visits taken to Harvard, Yale, Cornell, Penn, Dartmouth, and Princeton.

In a Recruiting News Guru exclusive interview, I sat down with the talented Illinois dual-threat getting an overview on his senior season with an update on his recruiting process.

Interview

Evan, from your junior year to your senior year, which aspects of your game did you work on before fall camp for the 2017 schedule?

“I focused on my quick release because of our offense, we threw a lot of quick screens and slants. I also focused on defensive coverages so I knew what routes to tell our receivers to run based on coverages.”

How did your senior season go?

“It did not go as planned, but I learned a lot about appreciating how great playing time is. I learned a lot about the game by studying and preparing for our games. I worked on being mentally prepared to play at any time. With the two starts I had, I appreciated the game even more and my love for the game grew even more.”

Which areas of your game saw the greatest growth during your senior year?

“I’d say my ability to anticipate a play. My speed grew. I was extending plays with my speed. My ability to read the field grew – I knew where the defense would be for run and pass plays. I was getting the ball out faster this year.”

What are the strengths of your game as a quarterback?

“My strengths – I’d say my best strength is the deep ball. My best passes are 25-plus. Another strength is my running ability. When I was in, I ran about 10 times a game. My coaches utilized that part of my game. Another strength, getting my players in the right position and leading them. I am good at throwing to a spot for receiver to get the ball away from the defender.”

Is there an area of your game you feel gets overlooked?

“Changing the play at the line. I was able to do that a little bit this season. There were some plays I could audible to from a pass or to a run depending on the defense. I studied the playbook a lot and studied film before each game. I felt comfortable doing that off my preparation for each game.”

Have you started offseason workouts, if so what are the focus of your workouts?

“Yes. I started the week after the season ended. One of my main hobbies is working out. I’m growing the strength in my legs. I am also strengthening my quick twitch muscle fibers and working on my lateral movements.”

Are you working with a quarterback coach?

Yes. I am working with Coach (Jeff) Christensen.”

How is Coach Christensen helping prepare you for the next level?

“I’ve been working with him since the fifth grade. If not for him, I would not be nearly as good as I am. He keeps it how it is with no sugarcoating. He tells you the truth like a college coach would. He tells you what you need to do whether you like it or not.”

Have you taken any official or unofficial visits?

“I took unofficial visits to Harvard, Yale, Cornell, Penn, Dartmouth, and Princeton over the summer and I have taken one recently to Washington University.”

Do you have any planned visits coming up?

“I’m planning on visiting Indiana.”

Which colleges are showing the most recruiting interest in you as National Signing Day nears?

“I am receiving interest from Washington University and some D-III schools like Carthage.”

When you have talked to college coaches during the recruiting process, what are college coaches telling you they like about your game?

“They like my ability to move in the pocket and my throwing ability. They like my running ability as well. I worked on my speed in the offseason, they like that.”

If there is a coach out there reading this and finding out about you for the first time, if said coach starts recruiting you, what type of student-athlete are they recruiting?

“They are recruiting a student-athlete who works harder than everyone on their team. My high school is 40 minutes away from my home. Every morning I would wake up at 4:30 a.m. to be on time for our workouts, and I made all of them. In high school, I have never missed an assignment and I have had perfect attendance for last three years except for an excused absence for a school visit and the death of a relative. I help other kids in my school with math and economics homework. When my receivers asked me to go throw, I was always there to help and never said no.”

Evan, thanks for your time today and good luck with your offseason workouts.

“Thank you.”

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Photo credit: Chicago Tribune; No. 11 Evan Sullivan in action

Photo credit: Sullivan family; No. 11 Evan Sullivan on the Brother Rice sidelines