In the end, Davonte Neal proved to be worth the wait…at least for Notre Dame.
The 5-foot-10, 175-pound athlete from Scottsdale, Ariz., just signed his National Letter of Intent with the Irish, almost three weeks after National Signing Day for the 2012 class. But Neal, who made the announcement from his former elementary school, was operating on his own timetable from start to finish.
He didn’t arrive at a press conference scheduled on Tuesday morning before returning a few hours later to make the decision.
The receiver/defensive back refused to seriously consider his multitude of options until after completing his senior season by leading Chaparral High School to its third straight state championship. As soon as that goal was accomplished, Notre Dame assistant Kerry Cooks was in Neal’s living room and South Bend was Neal’s first official visit.
