Ole Miss secured one of their top transfer targets of the 2022 offseason early Thursday, adding TCU running back Zach Evans from the transfer portal.

Evans announced his decision to transfer to Ole Miss just a day after running back Snoop Conner declared his intentions to enter the 2022 NFL Draft. Conner became the second Ole Miss running back to declare for the draft in the aftermath of the Rebels’ 21-7 loss to Baylor in the Sugar Bowl.

Evans made the announcement in a social media post Thursday morning.

“I would like to announce that I plan to enroll at the University of Mississippi,” Evans wrote. “I’m looking forward to a great opportunity in Oxford.”

The former 5-star recruit from Houston, Texas, rushed for 1,063 yards and nine touchdowns in two seasons under head coach Gary Patterson. Evans elected to enter the transfer portal after TCU fired Patterson midway through the 2021 season, ending his 21-year tenure as head coach of the Horned Frogs.

Evans visited Ole Miss during his initial recruitment cycle, and even signed with Georgia before being released from his commitment and ultimately enrolling at TCU. Now the versatile running back finds himself back in the SEC, joining an Ole Miss squad that desperately needed some good news following a week of bittersweet disappointment.

The Rebels lost two of the most talented players in school history this week when Conner and fellow running back Jerrion Ealy announced they would forego their senior seasons and enter the draft. The two backs combined for 3,845 rushing yards and 50 touchdowns from scrimmage in three years in Oxford.

Evans, the No. 2 running back in the class of 2020, is the first 5-star player to commit to Ole Miss under Lane Kiffin.

Evans, who has three years of eligibility remaining, was in the midst of a breakout season for the Horned Frogs before injuries limited him to just six games. He ran for 648 yards and five touchdowns in 2021, averaging over seven yards per carry.

The talented running back will headline a backfield that features rising juniors Henry Parrish Jr. and Kentrel Bullock, as well as incoming freshman Quinshon Judkins.