Evan Neal brings unusual athleticism to Alabama's tackle position

There were some last-minute adjustments to the podium prior to Evan Neal’s Zoom call with the media Thursday afternoon.

“You’ll have to give us a second,” an Alabama media representative said to reporters. “Evan's a little bigger than...”

“Than most,” the 6-foot-7, 360-pound offensive lineman interjected.

Neal is tied for the tallest player on Alabama’s roster and has 10 pounds on fellow offensive lineman Deonte Brown as the Tide’s heaviest player. Although, don’t let that size deceive you. Neal is bigger than most, but he’s also more athletic.

Earlier this offseason, the offensive lineman went viral when Alabama director of sports science Dr. Matt Rhea posted a video of him performing a dynamic coordination plyo jump. For those unfamiliar with sports-science lingo, just watch the clip.

“That was my first time doing something like that,” Neal said Thursday. “Dr. Rhea and Coach (David) Ballou, they’re great strength coaches, they teach us different exercises and whatnot like that. I feel like, as far as my athleticism goes, I don’t want to give myself too much credit of anything like that, but I feel like largely that goes to the fact that I come from a family of athletes. I’m just a big athletic guy.”

Neal’s teammates — and anyone else who has seen the clip — will tell you he’s being modest.

“You don’t really see that too much happen from guys like that,” defensive lineman Phidarian Mathis said. “I just think he showed the world what he’s capable of.”

The impressive jump isn’t the first time we’ve seen Neal flash his athleticism since arriving at Alabama. He earned Freshman All-SEC honors last season, starting all 13 games at left guard while allowing just one sack on 423 pass-blocking snaps. Although, while he’s made a few nice blocks, his most impressive feat might have come following an interception Tua Tagovailoa threw against Tennessee.

While most marveled over Henry Ruggs III’s ability to chase down Volunteers defensive back Nigel Warrior to prevent a pick-six, a closer look at the play shows a great deal of athleticism from Neal as well. After Warrior intercepted the ball at the goal-line, Neal broke into a sprint from the 5-yard line in an attempt to run him down. While the lineman never had a chance of catching the defensive back, he raised some eyebrows, motoring downfield while passing by several lighter players in the process.

“It was brought up by some of my teammates,” Neal said of the play. “That’s just how I was always taught to play ball. My father always taught me to always run to the football and maybe it’s going to get noticed even if at that time I wasn’t thinking it was going to be noticed but it did. Even if I didn’t have a chance to catch the guy, I was just trying to play with high effort.”

Neal came to Alabama as the top offensive tackle and No. 8 overall player in the 2019 class. While he’s always been a top prospect, his athleticism has come a long way since joining the Tide. Neal estimates that he weighed around 385 pounds, 25 pounds heavier than his listed weight on Alabama's roster.

While he says he still plans on trimming down a little bit, the new weight and agility should be beneficial as he looks to move from left guard to right tackle this season.

“So far, the transition’s been treating me well,” Neal said. “In high school, tackle was my natural position, so I feel like it just made the transition go much more smoother for me. I have more work that needs to be done. I can get better, but all in all, I can say the transition has been going smooth for me. I’ve been pleased with my performance so far.”

Last week, Nick Saban referred to Neal as the “prototype right tackle," stating he has the necessary size, length and conscientiousness to excel at the position. His fellow linemen tend to agree.

“He was already a natural tackle, so there really wasn’t that much to it,” offensive tackle Alex Leatherwood said. “As far as him and his fall camp, he’s doing great. Way better than I would have expected.”

Added Brown: “He’s a natural tackle. It hasn’t been a great adjustment. He’s a great athlete.”

Neal said he has benefited from playing next to experienced players such as Leatherwood and Brown. This offseason, the sophomore said Leatherwood even took some extra time with him, helping readjust to the tackle position by bringing him out to the band field to work on different angles and punch times.

“I’m really appreciative of that," Neal said. “It’s always good to have as much experience as we have in our room.”

Alabama players will return to the field later Thursday as they are set to hold their 16th practice of fall camp. From there, Neal’s next chance to showcase his athleticism will come Saturday as the team holds its second scrimmage inside of Bryant-Denny Stadium.

“Saturday’s scrimmage is extremely important. I feel like it furthers the training Coach Saban’s been having us do. It’s another opportunity to go out there and get better, fine-tune our craft so we can be ready come the first game.”