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A family power struggle reportedly caused Davonte Neal to skip out on announcing his college choice Tuesday morning, but the Irish won in the end.
Davonte Neal, a top athlete recruit from Chaparral High School in Scottsdale, Ariz., committed to the Notre Dame Fighting Irish on Tuesday afternoon, but not until after a considerable amount of drama.
Neal was expected to commit to either the Arizona Wildcats or the Irish on Tuesday morning in an announcement broadcast live from his former elementary school, Kyrene de la Esperanza. Much to the dismay of the children there, however, he didn't even show up.
It turns out, according to Irish Illustrated, that the reason for Neal's absence was a family emergency.
Spoke to Davonte Neal, who cited a family emergency this morning at 2:30 a.m. for altering announcement plans. Also apologetic delays.
— Irish Illustrated (@NDatRivals) February 21, 2012
Neal apologized to those at the elementary school for missing the announcement.
Neal was one of the last remaining uncommitted prospects of the 2012 recruiting cycle. His signing just about wraps up the 2012 recruiting year.
For more on Irish football, visit Notre Dame blog One Foot Down, plus SB Nation Indiana.
Davonte Neal, a top athlete recruit from Scottsdale (Ariz.) Chaparral High School, committed to Notre Dame Tuesday afternoon after an prolonged recruiting and announcement process.
The commitment followed considerable drama earlier in the day. Neal was expected to commit to either the Arizona Wildcats or the Notre Dame Fighting Irish Tuesday morning, live from his former elementary school. Instead, Neal chose nobody. In fact, he didn't even bother to show up. Hundreds of elementary school kids were crushed.
The school did not have the students reassemble upon Neal's real trip to the school, likely because enough class time had already been wasted. Neal did, however, go to each classroom and apologize. Neal's father was thought to want him to attend Notre Dame, while Neal wanted to be at Arizona.
Neal chose from finalists Arizona, Notre Dame, North Carolina, and Arkansas. In addition to those four, Neal held offers from Ohio State, Florida, and Oklahoma. Neal is 5'9 and 170 pounds and is rated four-stars by most recruiting services. He can play slot receiver or cornerback at the next level. Neal was impressive during the Under Armour All-America Game practices in Orlando.
If he plays offense, Neal should have an immediate impact in Notre Dame's spread offense in the slot and taking a few handoffs. If he plays defense, Neal could contend for a starting job, or perhaps as a nickelback. There's no question that Neal will make an impact on special teams in the return game. Neal was one of the last remaining uncommitted prospects of the 2012 cycle and his signing just about wraps up the 2012 recruiting year.
For more on Irish football, visit Notre Dame blog One Foot Down, plus SB Nation Indiana.
Davonte Neal, a top athlete recruit from Scottsdale (Ariz.) Chaparral High School, was expected to commit to either the Arizona Wildcats or the Notre Dame Fighting Irish Tuesday morning, live from his former elementary school. Instead, Neal chose nobody. In fact, he didn't even bother to show up. Now Neal is headed to the elementary school at which he was supposed to decide on Tuesday morning. The consensus among recruiting experts is that Neal wants to attend Arizona, while his father wants him at Notre Dame. We'll see who wins out shortly.
Neal's finalists are Arizona, Notre Dame, North Carolina, and Arkansas. In addition to those four, Neal held offers from Ohio State, Florida, and Oklahoma. Neal is 5'9 and 170 pounds and is rated four-stars by most recruiting services. He can play slot receiver or cornerback at the next level. Neal was impressive during the Under Armour All-America Game practices in Orlando.
If he plays offense, Neal should have an immediate impact in a spread offense in the slot and taking a few handoffs. If he plays defense, Neal could contend for a starting job, or perhaps as a nickelback. There's no question that Neal will make an impact on special teams in the return game. Neal was one of the last remaining uncommitted prospects of the 2012 cycle and his signing just about wraps up the 2012 recruiting year.
Davonte Neal, a top athlete recruit from Scottsdale (Ariz.) Chaparral High School, was expected to commit to either the Arizona Wildcats or the Notre Dame Fighting Irish Tuesday morning, live from his former elementary school. Instead, Neal chose nobody. In fact, he didn't even bother to show up. After his announcement had been delayed by about a half an hour, during which viewers were treated to children playing xylophones on stage and forced to create multiple drinking games, woe began to set in:
RT @azc_obert: Source; Davonte Neal may not come to his news conf. Struggle with decision?
— SBN College Football (@SBNationCFB) February 21, 2012
Bless the school, which at one point had to have the xylophone team play a whole 'nother set. Luckily, as pointed out on one of the most awkward sports broadcasts in the history of recruiting, principal Cheryl Green was able to quiet the crowd "just like that." Amazing. Ultimately, the students were dismissed because it was time to eat lunch. Recruiting writers covering the announcement, unfortunately, were not.
The thinking seems to be, as it has all along, that his father is still playing an active role in the college choice. That role being that he wants his son to choose Notre Dame, while Davonte wants to attend Arizona. Some analysis from SB Nation's Bud Elliot on what it may mean at some point when Neal does commit to a school:
Neal's finalists were Arizona, Notre Dame, North Carolina, and Arkansas. In addition to those four, Neal held offers from Ohio State, Florida, and Oklahoma. Neal is 5'9 and 170 pounds and is rated four-stars by most recruiting services. He can play slot receiver or cornerback at the next level. Neal was impressive during the Under Armour All-America Game practices in Orlando.
If he plays offense, Neal should have an immediate impact in a spread offense in the slot and taking a few handoffs. If he plays defense, Neal could contend for a starting job, or perhaps as a nickelback. There's no question that Neal will make an impact on special teams in the return game. Neal was one of the last remaining uncommitted prospects of the 2012 cycle and his signing just about wraps up the 2012 recruiting year.
All of this also provides us the last important-sports-work-being-done-next-to-school-things image like this for a while, so let's enjoy it:
Neal and his family will definitely lose tickets for citizenship, trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness and, of course, caring.
For more on Wildcats football, visit Arizona blog Arizona Desert Swarm, plus Pac-12 blog Pacific Takes and SB Nation Arizona.
For more on Irish football, visit Notre Dame blog One Foot Down, plus SB Nation Indiana.
Davonte Neal, a top athlete recruit from Scottsdale (Ariz.) Chaparral High School, is set to make his college choice at 11 a.m. EST Tuesday. Neal will decide between Arizona, Notre Dame, North Carolina, and Arkansas. In addition to those four, Neal holds or at one point held offers from Ohio State, Florida, and Oklahoma. Neal is 5'9 and 170 pounds and is rated four-stars by most recruiting services. He can play slot receiver or cornerback at the next level.
You can watch Neal's announcement live here.
UPDATE: Yes, it's still going on. There's been some delay:
Now @azc_obert reports Davonte Neal may not show up at all as he and his dad "may be debating between Arizona and Notre Dame"
— SB Nation (@sbnation) February 21, 2012
Some recent reports have had Neal going to Notre Dame, while others believe he will choose the hometown Arizona Wildcats. Arkansas and North Carolina are considered major longshots by most recruiting observers.
And there are valid reasons why Neal would choose the Irish or Arizona. Notre Dame offers the best education of the bunch, and the Irish need playmakers both at cornerback and in their spread offense. On the other hand, Arizona did hire Neal's high school coach, and that pre-existing relationship, assuming it is good, can't hurt Arizona's chances. Arizona is also the hometown team, and geography matters a lot in the recruiting process.
For more on Wildcats football, visit Arizona blog Arizona Desert Swarm, plus Pac-12 blog Pacific Takes and SB Nation Arizona.
For more on Irish football, visit Notre Dame blog One Foot Down, plus SB Nation Indiana.
Davonte Neal, the last major 2012 recruit to choose a school, will announce his college decision Tuesday morning. In addition to his local program, the Arizona Wildcats, he's down to the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, North Carolina Tar Heels and Arkansas Razorbacks. The Florida Gators made a late push, but were unable to get anywhere.
Based on Monday's real hot sports buzz, Notre Dame could have itself a fine little Tuesday:
I keep hearing good things for #NotreDame with Devonte Neal but nothing from a great, great source yet.
— Mike Farrell (@rivalsmike) February 20, 2012
At the end of the day, after recruiting circus surrounding Davonte Neal, I think it's Notre Dame...
— Richard Obert (@azc_obert) February 20, 2012
Neal is rated a four-star wide receiver, and he'd be the highest in the 2012 class for the Irish if he were to head South Bend-ward. He'd also form a potential future tandem with five-star quarterback Gunner Kiel and soothe bad memories from Signing Day, when receiver Deontay Greenberry flipped for the Houston Cougars.
For more on Irish football, visit Notre Dame blog One Foot Down, plus SB Nation Indiana.
The most coveted recruit left on the board, four-star AZ wide receiver Davonte Neal, has narrowed his list to four choices, one of which he'll announce on Feb. 21. The Florida Gators, who were stunned to see Stefon Diggs announce he'll stay home to play for the Maryland Terrapins, tried to join the running late, but Neal's father tells AZCentral.com it's too late.
The list remains the Arizona Wildcats, Arkansas Razorbacks, North Carolina Tar Heels and Notre Dame Fighting Irish. The Ohio St. Buckeyes also missed out on Diggs, but Luke Neal said the Buckeyes didn't try to join the Neal spree.
But cheer up, Gators and Buckeyes fans. Bud Elliott's already got you started on 2013 wide receiver recruiting:
The top target for the Buckeyes is undoubtedly Robert Foster. Foster is a 6'3", 190-pound receiver out of Monaca (Pa.) Central Valley who already holds 15 scholarship offers. Many consider Foster to be the top receiver in the country, and with his combination of speed, instincts and body control, it's hard to argue otherwise. In a normal year, Foster would be a tough pull for Ohio State. But with all the stuff going on at Penn State, Meyer had no trouble taking whoever he wanted from the Nittany Lions. It will be interesting to see if that continues, and if Foster wants to play his college ball up North.
[...]
One such [Florida] prospect is Stacy Coley, of Ft. Lauderdale (Fla.) Northeast High School. Early last year, there were questions as to Coley's grades and some wondered if he would be able to get into a school. That talk was seemingly premature, however, and insiders feel Coley has vastly improved his chances of avoiding the JUCO or prep route. The 6'1", 175 pound receiver is easily one of the 10 best in the country. He has excellent speed and body control, plucks the ball well and plays with a lot of confidence. Other offers for Coley include Florida State, West Virginia and North Carolina. Expect that list to grow.
Davonte Neal, one of the top athlete recruits in the country, is set to make his college decision on Feb. 21, according to the Daily Wildcat.
Neal had been considering Ohio State, but has narrowed his list to Notre Dame, Arkansas, North Carolina and Arizona. He has visited the former three and is scheduled to visit Arizona this weekend.
Neal is rated a four or five-star recruit and a top-ten athlete by most major services. It's not certain what position Neal will play in college. Some see him as a defensive back, while others think he will play a hybrid receiver and running back position. At 5'9" and 170 pounds, Neal is likely not big enough to be an every-down back in most college offenses. At either spot, Neal will be expected to contribute on special teams.
For more on Davonte Neal, check out SB Nation Arizona. To discuss Arizona football recruiting, go to Arizona Desert Swarm. To check out Arkansas football recruiting, head on over to Arkansas Expats. To learn more about North Carolina football recruiting, look at Carolina March. To read up on Notre Dame football recruiting, examine One Foot Down.
While Feb. 1 contained much of the excitement over recruits since it was National Signing Day, not all of the top college football prospects made their announcements on Wednesday. Several top prospects are keeping prospective schools waiting with bated breath for these announcements.
Coming from a Chicago high school, offensive lineman Jordan Diamond is waiting to make his announcement on Feb. 3. Diamond is a 4- or 5-star recruit depending on the recruiting service being looked at. He is considering Arkansas, Auburn, Michigan and Wisconsin.
Athlete Stefon Diggs will make his announcement on Feb. 10. He is rated as a 4- or 5-star recruit and is likely to play wide receiver wherever he ends up. Auburn, Cal, Florida, Ohio State and Maryland are all finalists. Diggs is visiting the latter school soon before making his announcement. Diggs is from Olney, MD.
Also on Feb. 10, Davonte Neal is expected to make his announcement. He was unable to commit to the Ohio St. Buckeyes on Wednesday and it may have been a result of the school waiting on Diggs' decision. Neal, meanwhile, will visit the Arizona Wildcats over the weekend.
Looking for National Signing Day coverage of other teams or recruits? Head to SB Nation College Football Recruiting. Also, check out more local coverage at our many fine college football blogs.
Davonte Neal is one of the top recruits in the country. Considered an 'athlete' because of his ability to play multiple positions, the Paradise Valley (Ariz.) Chaparral star is rated four stars by most of the major recruiting services. And his stock is on the rise. Neal is 5'10" and weighs in at 170 pounds. He's lightning quick and plenty fast. And his senior highlight tape shows why more than 25 schools saw fit to offer him.
Because of all the coaching changes going on in his area of the country, Neal delayed some of his recruiting visits. He'll be taking official visits long after National Signing Day (February 1st). Neal will choose from a lineup of Notre Dame, Ohio State, Arkansas, North Carolina and Arizona.
Neal took his first visit to Notre Dame back on December 9th. And the Irish coaches recently flew to Arizona to see him. They took a private jet and then rented a black Cadillac Escalade.
Neal grew up in Ohio and originally rooted for the Ohio State Buckeyes. He visited Columbus on January 13th. And like the Notre Dame group, the Buckeye coaches also visited Neal over the weekend. No word on their mode of transportation, however. Ohio State insiders are confident in their chances of securing Neal.
But Arizona is also charging hard down the stretch. The Wildcats hired Neal's high school coach, and because of that, they now have a shot. Neal cited his coach now working for Arizona as a reason he will consider the Wildcats. Neal plans to visit Arizona on February 10th.
SB Nation Arizona pulled this bit from a recent ESPN Article on Neal.
"We had a home visit with Arizona Wednesday afternoon and it went very well," Neal's father Luke said. "Rich Rod [Rodriguez], Robert Anae and Tony Dews all came together and were really blown away. Robert and I coached together at Rexburg (Idaho) Ricks junior college back in the early 90s and we've been close ever since.
"I always said if Robert was at Arizona, we would give them a look, because I know he would look after Davonte, but I honestly didn't expect much to come from the home visit. Coach Rod was very impressive, and Davonte liked him a lot. He's a good guy, a family guy and a good football coach. He's intense and personable but also has a way of making you feel comfortable around him.
Neal has also visited Arkansas, and may visit North Carolina. Insiders do not consider the Hogs and Tar Heels as serious players for his commitment.
Davonte Neal Withdraws From High School After Picking Notre Dame
Four-star Arizona wide receiver and cornerback Davonte Neal, who signed with the Notre Dame Fighting Irish to conclude 2012's finest Signing Day-ish legend, may not be done adding to his story. The Arizona Republic's Richard Obert reports Neal has withdrawn from Scottsdale Chaparral High, with coach Dave Huffine confirming.
Hard to say just what sort of an effect this could have on his college career, since he'll still need to graduate from one high school or another or obtain a similar degree in order to enroll at Notre Dame.
Neal chose Notre Dame over the Arizona Wildcats and others at a Feb. 21 announcement that saw him miss his original presser time, disrupt the learning schedules of many a youngster and return later on to apologize to each classroom in turn before selecting the Irish.
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For more on Irish football, visit Notre Dame blog One Foot Down, plus SB Nation Indiana.
Feb 27 2:36p by Jason Kirk - 0 comments