Ryan Neal brings experience to young Saluki defense

There is a youth movement in the Saluki defense. Eight underclassmen are starters on that side of the ball, but they're led by a senior, safety Ryan Neal.

Neal is a useful resource to his young defensive teammates. Since setting foot on campus as a true freshman in 2014, he has appeared in every Saluki football game. He's closing in on 200 career tackles. He earned MVFC Defensive Player of the Week honors earlier this season logging eight tackles a pick and a fumble recovery against SEMO.

"When you've been around here a long time, people start to look to you as an example," Neal said. "This is like a home away from home, and I've taken on the role of a big brother. If you need anything, I've got you. If you have questions, call me. I'll help you out."

Thanks in part to Neal's tutelage, Southern has already forced eight turnovers and recorded 12 sacks. The unit is on pace to shatter last year's totals in both categories.

Despite Neal's current situation as a defensive captain, it hasn't always been smooth sailing for the Merrillville, Indiana native. He's played two positions at SIU; after playing safety as a freshman, Neal moved to cornerback in 2015 before moving back to his original position as a junior.

In 2015, Neal started in all 11 games for SIU, but just five the following year thanks in part to the addition of Freshman All-American safety Jeremy Chinn. This year, Neal starts opposite Chinn to give SIU one of the most dynamic safety combinations in the MVFC.

"He makes me step my game up. He has mad talent, and I want to make sure that he stays on the right path and stays focused," Neal said. "He motivates me. I don't even see it as competition. It's for the team. That boy makes the defense better. If I'm on the field with him, then I'm better too."

Neal said losing his starting spot as a junior forced him to take a look at the game from a new perspective.

"You have to take advantage of every single snap out here," he said. "Every time you're in the weight room training and running, you have to take advantage of it all. You have to be fully committed to football and fall in love with the process."

Neal had a new defensive coordinator in each of his first three seasons. Now, the Salukis have stability with defensive coordinator Kraig Paulson in his second season, and the program is starting to grow towards championship level defense.

"I want Carbondale to realize that we have something special here and we can bring that back," Neal said. "We had a streak (of playoff appearances) here from 2003 to 2009. I want that to start up again. When guys walk around in the city, I want people to know they're Saluki Football players. I want Carbondale to be proud of us."

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