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BOCA RATON – Connor Neighbors didn’t need to be told twice.
“I walked outside and both of my bosses told me to suit up,” Neighbors said. “And that’s all I needed to hear.”
A strength and conditioning at FAU, Neighbors put the pads on for the first time since a 2015 injury ended his brief career with the Tennessee Titans.
A former standout fullback at LSU, Neighbors quickly donned shoulder pads, a helmet, and a white No. 1 jersey, rather than the 43 he wore with the Tigers, for Saturday’s practice in preparation for Tuesday’s Boca Raton Bowl against Akron.
“They gave me No. 1, but my dad always told me I should wear No. 1 because it makes me look bigger and faster,” Neighbors said.
The practice didn’t start smoothly for Neighbors. He’s not normally on the field for practices, which is why he could probably be forgiven for stretching with defensive players – where he received smiles and high fives from assistant coaches.
When the stretch period ended, the team ran one direction. Neighbors momentarily went the other way.
“I was a little confused,” Neighbors said. “I was told I needed to be with the tight ends for turnover drill and I didn’t know where they were. I was just like a fart lost in a whirlwind – anywhere the breeze takes me.”
Neighbors has helped out with some portions of practice before. He’ll often lead conditioning drills at the end or practice. Sometimes he’ll be asked to fill in on kick coverage drills when the Owls are shorthanded.
Saturday marked the first time he wore pads and a helmet.
“Not only to watch practice but to be a part of practice is a euphoric feeling,” said Neighbors, perhaps exaggerating a little. “Now I’ve got to go back and watch tape, correct my mistakes and perfect my craft.”
On Saturday Neighbors played some wide receiver and fullback. He didn’t ascend the depth chart quickly enough to play on the field where the first and second teams practiced, which kept him from grabbing Lane Kiffin’s attention.
“I saw from afar one play,” Kiffin said. “I’m sure he’s worn out.”
Neighbors caught a handful of passes on the day, but one missed opportunity still bothered him an hour after the Owls left the field.
“I had one drop,” Neighbors said. “I had about four catches though. One drop that’s going to haunt me for the rest of my life.”
Haiden Nagel (in red) tries to strip the ball from Connor Neighbors during a practice drill. (OwlAccess.com photo)
OK, that may be a bit of hyperbole on Neighbors’ part. His next statement might be, too, although Neighbors did appear noticeably excited about his opportunity to take the football field as a player one more time.
“Today is probably the greatest day of my life, so far,” Neighbors said, smiling. “You don’t get to end on your own terms. Football is taken away from you. So the fact that I could strap up, put a mouthpiece in, have a helmet on, get the ball and make the team better, oh man, this is bringing me back to my days. I don’t know if I’m going to be able to sleep tonight. What time is it?”
Neighbors isn’t the only FAU staffer to return to glory this bowl season. Running backs coach Kevin Smith borrowed Buddy Howell’s practice gear earlier this week and ran a few plays with the offense.
A former Detroit Lion, Smith set the Conference USA single-season rushing touchdown record while at Central Florida, a record current FAU running back Devin Singeltary tied this season and can break on Tuesday.
“He looked good,” Singletary said of Smith. “For him to just be out of football for that long and then get back into it, he looked real good. He had a lot of patience. He had a little change of pace.”
Singletary couldn’t pass up the opportunity to coach his position coach, who failed to continue one of his runs through the whistle.
“I told him he’s got to finish on one of the runs,” Singletary said, smiling. “He didn’t finish, so you know we had to get on him about that.”
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