Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, September 29, 1993 TAG: 9309290106
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DOUG DOUGHTY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHARLOTTESVILLE LENGTH: Medium
He's almost embarrassed to say why, however.
Although Neal returned two interceptions for touchdowns in the Cavaliers' 41-38 victory over Virginia Tech, his memories of the afternoon are bittersweet.
"Besides those two interceptions, I really got my butt kicked that game," said Neal, UVa's middle linebacker. "Everybody saw those two big plays and got kind of excited about me.
"I got handled by this guy [Tech center Jim Pyne] the whole game. No matter what I did, he was there. He did a job on me. I was happy after that game, but it was an empty happiness because I knew I hadn't really done what I was supposed to do."
You can imagine Neal's reaction when at least one publication selected him as its national defensive player of the week.
"It felt kind of odd to see the national player of the week had two pickoffs and five tackles," Neal said. "Five tackles for a middle linebacker is nothing. They ran up 573 yards and most of that was on the ground. I felt helpless out there.
"I felt terrible after that game. Just bad. That was a great motivating factor in the off-season. If I wanted to be one of the best, I had to be able to play against the best. All spring and all summer I tried to go against [teammate Mark] Dixon a lot."
Say what you will about Neal, but he isn't into self-delusion. He made himself stronger with a renewed dedication to lifting weights and made himself more knowledgeable with a summer in the film room.
"He's reached the point where the game has become extremely important to him," said Rick Lantz, UVa's defensive coordinator and linebackers coach. "He should have been embarrassed by his performance [at Tech].
"We looked at the tapes together and every play I asked him, `What are you doing here? What are you seeing here?' You can't be a robot out there. Pyne is a tremendous player, but [Neal] made it easy for him. I will say he made tremendous strides in the spring."
Neal always was a good pass defender and, even when he lost his starting job to Curtis Hicks for the last four games of the 1992 season, he invariably would enter the game in passing situations. Still, the interceptions against Tech were the only interceptions in his first two years at Virginia.
That changed quickly, although Neal didn't receive credit for an interception and lengthy return on an attempted extra-point pass by Maryland in this season's opener. He has intercepted passes in the past two games, however, and ranks second on the team in tackles.
"He's the anchor to that linebacker corps and the key to our defense right now," head coach George Welsh said of Neal, a 6-foot-3, 234-pound junior.
That's close to what Virginia expected when Neal picked the Cavaliers over Miami, Rutgers, Iowa and North Carolina. He was best known as a pass-rusher at Hackensack (N.J.) High School, where he had 20 sacks as a senior, including seven in one game.
"My parents thought I was going to Rutgers," said Neal, who grew up 10 miles from Giants Stadium, the Scarlet Knights' home field this season. "I told Coach [Doug] Graber, `I'm going to take these two trips [to Miami and Virginia] and then announce I'm going to Rutgers.'
"It's a big difference between here and home. I remember when I came down here, Benson Goodwyn, who was from New Jersey, showed me around. We got out of his car and he said, `You can leave the door unlocked.' Then, we got back to his apartment and that was unlocked, too."
Neal thought he might fill the outside-linebacker spot then manned by Chris Slade in the Cavaliers' 3-4 defense. However, UVa changed coordinators in the spring before Neal's first year and Lantz installed a 4-3.
As an inside linebacker, Neal misses the days when he could take aim on the quarterback from the corner, but he has taken on added responsibility now that Slade has taken his big-play threat to the NFL's New England Patriots.
"He was almost a god out here," Neal said. "Everybody knew that Slade was going to do something and that he was a big-play maker and, if we were down, he'd always pick us up. It was like, `Why me?' as long as Slade was out there. But, now it seems like people are looking to me more."
Neal said it bothers him that doubts remain about UVa's defense despite the Cavaliers' back-to-back home shutouts (38-0 over Navy on Sept. 11 and 35-0 over Duke on Saturday). He doesn't have to be reminded, however, that UVa was 2-4 in its last six games last year and didn't exactly shut down Virginia Tech.
On Nov. 20, when the Cavaliers entertain the Hokies, Neal hopes to leave Pyne with a different impression.
"I figure I'm not the only one he's done that to," Neal said. "Besides, I've got a couple more stops to make before then." B3 B1 NEAL Neal
by CNB