Arizona football: Former Wildcat DaVonte’ Neal signs with Toronto Argonauts

Off to the CFL for the former five-star recruit

After not landing any kind of NFL deal, former Arizona Wildcats cornerback and wide receiver DaVonte’ Neal has been signed by the CFL’s Toronto Argonauts.

The Argos announced Neal as a defensive back in their release.

As a defensive player, Neal had two interceptions and 85 tackles for the Wildcats the past two seasons. He also picked up 11 pass deflections and a fumble recovery.

Overall, Neal’s time at Arizona was kind of a disappointment. Out of high school, he ended up going to Notre Dame after a controversial announcement press conference, and played in the National Championship Game as a true freshman.

He then made the decision to transfer to Arizona to “be closer to family”, and sat out the 2013 season.

In 2014, Neal was a wide receiver and punt returner for the Wildcats. He caught 27 passes for 214 yards and also returned 12 punts for 133 yards, including a lone 81-yard TD return.

The next spring, as Neal’s role in the wide receiving corps appeared to be dissipating, he made the decision to move to the defensive side of the ball and play defensive back. That ended up not being great either as he was constantly targeted and picked apart by opposing offenses.

It will be interesting to see if he’s able to forge a career in the CFL. And maybe we’ll see him try to cover Juron Criner at one point.

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