by Pat Turner, goUTSA.com contributing writer
SAN ANTONIO — Jason Neill was looking forward to having a breakout year going into his junior season at UTSA.
After learning the ropes at defensive end and becoming more familiar with college football, he was ready to make a big step forward.
Unfortunately, a season-ending knee injury in the opener at New Mexico foiled everything, at least temporarily. However, a medical redshirt allowed the 6-foot-2, 260-pounder to relive his junior campaign.
In this case, take two was a hit, as the Flower Mound Marcus product recorded 29 tackles, including a career-high eight stops at Oklahoma State. Because he made that big of an impact, Neill entered this year as a preseason All-Conference USA selection.
“It was a good year,” said Neill, who is working on his master’s degree after graduating last May with a degree in exercise science. “The injury was a setback, but I had a good recovery. I was good to go when we started in the spring because I had some good things happen. I was going through rehab and perfecting everything else, so I kind of had a head start.”
Neill admits to being a little gun shy during the early part of physical contact. After taking a few hits and delivering some more of his own, everything came together.
“When I went out there I wasn’t going to hold anything back.” Neill said. “I felt fine. I was older and the game had slowed down for me. Moving to defensive end after playing tackle in high school had been a big transition and I am comfortable there now.”
Neill is taking the same approach this season in his final campaign with the Roadrunners. Whatever is accomplished, he’s already left his mark on the program because of his ability to overcome adversity.
“Jason is one of the hardest workers on our team,” defensive coordinator Neal Neathery said. “He’s really serious about his business and everything you want in a player. He’s won our weight room award three years in row and has toughness and strength. He is the poster child of what you want as a football player.”
While Neill is making a name for himself on defense, it took a move by his high school coaches for the entire story to develop.
Neill worked mostly as a backup quarterback and fullback early in his prep career, but he moved to defensive tackle prior to his junior season.
Switching to the defensive side was an introduction to a whole new world.
Not only did Neill find it more enjoyable to give hits than to receive, but he also was effective in totaling 66 tackles en route to earning District 8-5A Defensive Player of the Year honors.
“Moving to defense was really cool,” Neill said. “It felt natural to me, but I think playing on offense early on in my career really helped me. I knew what a quarterback was thinking and was able to read things easily, so it all made sense to me.”
Because of his success, Neill began thinking about carrying his skills to college. His older brother, David, played at Texas Tech and he wanted to experience the same thrill.
Instead of the Red Raiders, his chance came with UTSA. Once again, he was introduced to a whole new world, much to his liking.
“I had never been around UTSA or even knew it existed,” Neill said. “I heard it was a start-up program and thought that was cool. It was my first and only offer. I had no idea what was going to happen, but it ‘s all worked out well.”