DB Jamario O'Neal (official thread)

[BB73]

Departing seniors were asked about their experience at tOSU.

dispatch

Jamario O'Neal

Defensive back

Cleveland | Age: 22

Parting thought: "It has been a great experience and the relationships I have made will be lifelong. I've learned that you should always be accountable for your actions and to be punctual. Both of those go a long way in life. ... I would tell younger teammates to make sure you learn from others, whether good or bad."

[craigblitz]

Punctuality seems to be the theme in a lot of these. I think there is a lot his quote in regards to his personal situation. Best of luck Jam'O!

[MSURacerDT55]

This guy is going to be the sleeper of tOSU's draft class,he has too much hidden talent and its a D-backs coach that is going to fall in love with him

[Buckskin86]

Football: Mansfield native on NFL radar
Workout with Browns up next for speedy Ohio State safety Jamario O'Neal
By JON SPENCER ? News Journal ? March 22, 2009


Ohio State defensive back Jamario O'Neal, a Mansfield native, laughs with teammates Malcolm Jenkins and James Laurinaitis before a 2007 team photo in Columbus. O'Neal joined Jenkins and Laurinaitis, both expected to be first-day picks in the April 25 and 26 NFL Draft, for OSU's pro day workouts last week. (AP photo)


COLUMBUS -- If it were just a matter of speed, Jamario O'Neal would be flexing his right hand, getting ready to sign a contract with an NFL team.


Representatives from 29 of the 32 NFL teams were present on the campus of The Ohio State University last week when the senior safety from Mansfield took part in the school's pro day in the Woody Hayes Athletic Center.

Workouts were closed to the media, but O'Neal said his best time in the 40-yard dash was 4.38 seconds. Based on reports, tailback Chris "Beanie" Wells was the only OSU player to clock a faster time. One team had Wells at 4.34, which vaulted him back into the top half of the first round in many mock drafts after he had posted a disappointing 4.59 -- albeit on a slower surface -- at the scouting combine last month in Indianapolis.

Malcolm Jenkins, an All-American cornerback for the Buckeyes and projected first-round pick, only ran in the 4.5 to 4.56 range at pro day and the combine, leading to speculation that he might be a safety at the next level.

O'Neal's time, on the other hand, might make him a prospect at both safety and corner, his original position with the Buckeyes. Versatility is never a bad thing.

"I'll be a placekicker if they want. I just need an opportunity," O'Neal said. "On the sheet I filled out for teams, I put cornerback/safety. I'll do whatever."

O'Neal, a former football and track star for Mansfield Senior before finishing up his high school career at Cleveland Glenville, was hoping to run an even faster time.

"It wasn't what I wanted, but I can't complain," he said. "I spent a lot of time watching the combine on TV, looking at the times and technique of the safeties."

O'Neal has a workout scheduled with the Browns on April 14.

"(Cornrich) told me it's good to get a call from a team so early, especially since I didn't go to the combine," O'Neal said. "He said I should look forward to getting more calls."

O'Neal had a golden opportunity last spring when he was running with the first team at nickel back. But he and Washington ended up sitting out the spring game and the first two games of the 2008 regular season for committing an undisclosed team violation.

O'Neal referred to his lapse in judgment as "a lump on the head."

Washington, who wowed the scouts at the combine with his measurables, lost his starting cornerback job to Chimdi Chekwa and O'Neal never worked his way back into the mix.

"I can't blame anybody but myself," O'Neal said, "but once I came back (from suspension), I knew my days at Ohio State were over. They weren't going to give me a chance no matter how hard I worked. It wasn't like I was starting over, but I knew I had to do what I could to get better. I had to do something my senior year, even if it just meant special teams.

"I still prepared myself as if I was going to play. I hoped for the best and expected the worst."

The biggest surprise for the 5-foot-11 O'Neal at pro day came when he stepped on the scale. He weighed 201 pounds, considerably less than the 225 he carried at the start of spring ball last year.

"It snuck up on me when I gained so much weight, because I didn't lose any speed, and it snuck up on me again when I lost it," O'Neal said. "After the season, I've been working out and eating better. I think that's why I appear bigger than I am."

O'Neal did 15 reps of 225 pounds on the bench press for the scouts. Depending on what happens over the next few months, hoisting the weight of unfulfilled potential off his shoulders could be his greatest feat of strength.

"He has moved on; he realizes he's doing the things necessary to make good choices," Jefferson said. "He and I have talked in general about getting his degree. Anything beyond that is gravy. The No. 1 reason he came here, and his family had him come here, was to get his degree. He'll be fine."

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