TAMPA, Fla. — The legend of Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans grew a bit more this summer, but it had nothing to do with a training camp sizzle reel of highlights or a sizable charitable contribution (although he’s done quite a bit of both).
The five-time Pro Bowl player was at a Tampa gymnastics center in July watching his 8-year-old daughter Ariah complete an assessment for class placement, and saw the instructors attempting to spot her on a basic back bend. Evans had seen her turn not only countless cartwheels, but aerials with no hands, so he went down to the gym floor to lend some encouragement.
He told her, “Show ’em what you can do.”
“They tried to put her in a beginner’s level. In Texas, she was a little more advanced level,” said Evans, who awarded 13 college scholarships totaling $150,000 this year. “They had her just doing like cartwheels and stuff, and she was just flipping all over the house. So, I just had to let the coach know, and then see what she can do.”