Why are Evangelicals Celebrating Francis Collins?

On Tuesday, Francis Collins announced he is resigning from the National Institutes of Health. Collins has long been celebrated by evangelical influencers, and upon his departure those praising him included Russell Moore, Tim Keller, and David French. The well-credentialed  evangelicals who populate urban churches like Keller's have been taught to aspire to a "faithful presence" in elite institutions, and Collins is often viewed as epitomizing this. He succeeded not just at an elite level, but in the scientific world, a domain where Christians have a particularly hard time gaining respect.