Devin

Neal

Akers’ audition at the Saints’ June 10-12 mandatory minicamp was a success. The development is bad news for Kendre Miller, Devin Neal and Clyde Edwards-Helaire. The trio was competing for the No. 2 spot behind the soon-to-be 30-year-old Alvin Kamara, who could use a reliable rushing complement. Akers ran well last year, playing for both the Texans and Vikings. Active for Weeks 9-Wild Card Weekend with the latter team, Akers averaged 4.9 yards per carry and 3.0 yards after contact. The depth chart is not yet set in stone, but Akers is best treated as the presumed No. 2 at this time.

Neal is an accomplished dual-threat prospect who joins the Saints with 759 rushing attempts and 101 targets on his college resume. He possesses the requisite size (5'11/213) for an NFL running back and could feasibly handle a high-volume workload, if need be. Neal’s sixth-round draft capital works against him but Kendre Miller’s grasp on the No. 2 running back role is very tenuous after two wasted seasons in the pros. Neal is a name to know for the late-round bench stash tier this summer.

Neal (5’11/213) received multiple Big 10 and Big 12 offers coming out of high school and chose to stay at home and attend Kansas despite the program’s dreadful recent history. He took over as the team’s starting running back from day one and ran for 707 yards plus eight scores on 158 attempts. He then played baseball for the Jayhawks in the spring, appearing in nine games. Neal topped 1,000 rushing yards as a sophomore before posting back-to-back 1,200-yard seasons on the ground. He also topped 200 through the air in both campaigns. Neal was the centerpiece of an incredible turnaround for Kansas, leading the team to a 9-4 record as a junior. They went 0-9 the year before Neal stepped on campus. Neal lacks top-end speed on tape and that was confirmed at the combine with a 4.58 Forty. He’s a safe bet to get what’s blocked and then some but isn’t going to shake defenders with fancy footwork. Neal’s track record of handling a large workload should earn him a role as a versatile backup, but a lack of special teams experience may limit his opportunities as a rookie.

Neal (5'11/210) also added two receptions for 26 yards and a touchdown, as the Jayhawks upset the Longhorns. It was the first Big 12 road win for Kansas since 2008, winning outright as a 30.5-point underdog, while snapping a 56-game losing skid in conference play on the road. It was the first win for Kansas at Texas, going 0-19 prior to Saturday, dating back to 1901. Neal was a huge part, and he is the first KU player with at least three touchdowns in a single game since James Sim against West Virginia on Nov. 16, 2013. Next up is a trip to TCU on Saturday.

Neal had 75 yards and a TD by intermission as Kansas built a 10-0 halftime lead. That included a 44-yard scamper that featured slick footwork and vision to find a cut-back lane at the line of scrimmage and the jets to get past the third level of the defense. The Jayhawks kept feeding Neal out of the locker room, but OU’s run defense tightened up after halftime. The Jayhawks travel to Oklahoma State next week.

If there was any positive development for Kansas over these first five games, it’s been the play of Neal. The freshman tailback had a long run of 21, and consistently picked up four-to-five yards on his carries. It just wasn’t close to enough with a Jayhawks’ passing game that is incompetent, and incompetent somehow feels like an understatement. Neal looks like a future player, however, and needs more touches in two weeks against Texas Tech after a bye.

Neal (5'11/210) earned 17 of the backfield’s 25 carries, with sophomore Torry Locklin handling the other seven and looking the part of a suitable RB2. With the promising freshman looking like the clear number one for the foreseeable future, veteran running back Velton Gardner announced he would enter the transfer portal this past week. This game marks the first time Neal has gone over 100-yards rushing in his young career, with many more on the way. He will try to cross the century mark for the second-straight game next Saturday against Iowa State.

We may have seen a changing of the guard at running back for the Jayhawks this afternoon. In the opener, Velton Gardner started and dominated both the snaps and the touches -- Neal had only three snaps in that Week 1 win. Last week against Coastal Carolina, Neal pulled almost even in snaps, with 28 to Gardner’s 30. This week, Gardner had only two carries for four yards. Neal, a true freshman from Lawrence, received a ton of hype over the offseason and is seen as a cornerstone player for HC Lance Leipold to build around. We’d expect Neal to get 1A committee snaps at minimum the rest of the way. Kansas has a road date at Duke next weekend.

Neal (5'11/210) was unable to get much running room all night, only averaging 3.2 yards per carry. Neal was the primary weapon on Kansas’ first drive, carrying it seven times. He didn’t have much success on those carries, but he got it done when he needed to, punching it in from two yards out to finish the drive. Neal wasn’t much of a factor outside of that, but it’s hard to judge the freshman in a negative game script and no running room to be found. Neal will look to bounce back against Baylor next Saturday.

Neal (5'11/210) is one of Kansas’s most important newcomers, and based upon the words of his head coach, he appears poised to be a part of the rotation immediately. “Some days, there’s some really good flashes of what his future is going to be. And then there’s times, there’s a little bit of hesitancy in that,” Kansas HC Lance Leipold said. “But he’s learning, and he’s a sponge. That’s the thing I love about him.” The Jayhawks open their season on September 3 against South Dakota.