Washington has had more than its fair share of wide receiver talent over the last several seasons.
Roma Odunze. Jalen McMillan. Ja’Lynn Polk. Giles Jackson. Denzel Boston.
A 6-foot, 189-pound wide receiver from Penn State announced his transfer to Washington for the 2025 season in a social media post Wednesday night. Evans has one year of eligibility remaining after spending the previous three seasons with the Nittany Lions.
Omari Evans brings valuable experience to a young Washington wide receiver unit that recently suffered a setback with the unexpected departure of former five-star recruit Johntay Cook II on Jan. 14.
During the 2024 season, Evans hauled in 21 receptions for 415 yards and five touchdowns, helping Penn State reach the College Football Playoff semifinals. He appeared in 16 games and started six before entering the transfer portal following the Nittany Lions’ narrow 27-24 loss to Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl.
Over his three-year tenure at Penn State, Evans totaled 30 receptions for 564 yards and seven touchdowns.
Hailing from Killeen, Texas, Evans was rated a three-star recruit by 247Sports’ composite rankings. He starred at Shoemaker High School, where he played multiple positions, including cornerback and quarterback.
As part of the 2022 recruiting cycle, Evans was ranked the No. 77 wide receiver and the No. 78 overall player in Texas. He committed to Penn State over a final list that included Vanderbilt and Rutgers, while also holding offers from notable programs such as Arkansas, Baylor, Boston College, Cincinnati, Houston, Indiana, Kansas State, Maryland, Northwestern, Oklahoma State, SMU, Syracuse, Texas Tech, Utah, Virginia, Wake Forest, and Washington State.
Evans saw action in 13 games as a true freshman in 2022, followed by nine appearances in his sophomore campaign in 2023.
In 2024, he became a crucial piece of James Franklin’s offense, ranking third on the team in receiving yards behind John Mackey Award-winning tight end Tyler Warren and standout receiver Harrison Wallace III. Evans led the team in yards per reception, averaging an impressive 19.8 yards per catch.
Despite his big-play ability, Evans’ opportunities were restricted by Penn State’s offensive scheme. He was targeted just 38 times throughout the season, per Pro Football Focus (PFF), which was 14 fewer than running back Nicholas Singleton, who ended the year with 375 receiving yards. For comparison, Warren led the team with 135 targets in 2024.
Evans was primarily deployed as a deep threat, with an average depth of target of 20.8 yards, according to PFF. His 59-yard touchdown reception against Kent State on Sept. 21 was the longest play by a Penn State wide receiver last season. Additionally, he excelled in contested situations, hauling in 80% of his contested targets—the highest rate among Nittany Lions with multiple contested opportunities.
At Washington, Evans will bolster a receiving corps looking to replace two of its three primary starters. Both Jackson and Jeremiah Hunter exhausted their eligibility following the Sun Bowl.
Evans is expected to be a strong candidate to step into Hunter’s role, as Hunter finished the 2024 season with 36 catches for 490 yards and a touchdown in his lone season at UW.
Although Evans is two inches shorter and around 20 pounds lighter than Hunter, his experience playing on the perimeter—where he lined up for 75% of his snaps at Penn State, similar to Hunter’s role at Washington—could give him an advantage over sophomore Rashid Williams in the competition for a starting spot.
Williams, a former Kalen DeBoer recruit, served as Hunter’s backup in 2024, finishing the season with 11 receptions for 138 yards and a touchdown.
Washington also reinforced its receiver group with an influx of young talent in its 2025 recruiting class, adding Deji Ajose, Marcus Harris, Chris Lawson, Dezmen Roebuck, and Raiden Vines-Bright. Notably, Harris, Lawson, and Vines-Bright—each a composite four-star recruit—have already enrolled at UW for the winter quarter.
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