Bear Down Wildcats

Neal is a 5-10, 173, redshirt Junior cornerback from Phoenix and Akron, Ohio. First, it feels like Neal has played more than 1 year at Arizona. Between the recruiting drama and his redshirt year in 2013 after transferring in from Notre Dame, Neal has been a factor for the program for awhile.



Last year, as a key part of the offensive rotation, Neal started 10 games and played in 13 making 27 catches for 214 yards and 2 TDs. He had an additional TD on a punt return against Wash St and had 12 total returns on the season for 133 yards and 1 lost fumble against ASSu.



For 2015 Neal has moved to the defensive side of the ball and is currently in a fight for a starting spot at corner. He brings athleticism, speed, and playmaking ability to the defensive backfield. Maybe more importantly, Neal is a natural, vocal leader. With our younger DBs this year, Neal's leadership could be key to making sure everyone plays together and keeps in the game when things go wrong.

19 is the number of rushing TDs Arizona gave up last year. I think that is a number the coaches are happy with. The number Arizona really hopes to bring down the 28 passing TDs the defense allowed. Hopefully, Neal and the other DBs, along with an improved pass rush, can bring that number down.

NO. 19

Carey enters name in UA’s record book in rout of No. 5 Oregon

SCORE: Arizona Wildcats 42, No. 5 Oregon 16

DATE: Nov. 23, 2013

No 19 trivia from AST today just who has worn and is wearing 19.

Arizona football countdown: 19 days, DaVonte' Neal's switch to cornerback creates a major opportunity for him

There is no way Neal still weighs less than 180 lbs, right? That weight has to be from when he first arrived?

Scummy Dick Douglas wrote:There is no way Neal still weighs less than 180 lbs, right? That weight has to be from when he first arrived?

I don't think it's right. They have yet to update it this year except for the incoming freshman.

Gimino on why history supports Neal's position change.

He asked the coaches after last season to switch him from slot receiver to cornerback.

"It's usually coaches suggesting (a position switch) first, but in this case it was his suggestion and we kind of agreed, 'Hey, this might be a great move,'" coach Rich Rodriguez said after Wednesday's practice. "The nice part about him is he's gotten better every day. He made progress in the spring, but he's a whole lot better now than he was in the spring."

In light of what happened during the game last night, Neal looked fantastic. If there's any sign of life in this defense it's him and some of the other guys in the secondary.

FightWildcatsFight wrote:In light of what happened during the game last night, Neal looked fantastic. If there's any sign of life in this defense it's him and some of the other guys in the secondary.

Very true! If they played in Kiss boots they would be taller too

Do we have a LB who can cover a TE? That's a bigger question

Was able to make a lot of tackles but also gave up a lot of catches. I can't remember if it was Neal or Holliday that got beat for the TD by the TE. Our numbers are really hard to read.

He ain't afraid to come up and make a tackle, which is good. And he appears to be a great tackler in space - going low and taking out the legs.

Oh, and he blocked a really big kick. I'm happy I picked him in RAP.

He has potential to be really good. The problems I saw last night were him giving guys on the edge too much cushion while the ball was in the air instead of closing in. Playing like he was afraid to get burned by YAC. When he played more aggressively good things happened. One thing that stuck out to me was several tackles he made that weren't on his side of the field. We already knew this, but he's fast.

I don't think that's going to be the only kick he blocks this year. He gets in there so fast rushing off the edge.

One thing RR said in his first year here was that if a guy made a mistake, it was ok as long as he made that mistake going full speed. Neal needs to remember that. Go after the receivers while the ball is in the air and if you get juked, well, so be it. Make those guys hear footsteps.

Neal had some hard tackles too. I was impressed overall. Although most were fair catches, he finally looked normal doing punt returns.

UTSA was going after him early, surprising given tiny freshman Morisson was on the other side. That kid is small

Davonte Neal has the tools to become a Patrick Peterson type player. He flashed some of that last night. I truly believe that we are going to see him emerge as a premier corner in the long tradition of Arizona premier corners this year. He has the right coaches and system to make it happen.

He shed some shackles and came up for tackles. That was good to see. He'll get better.