Two-sport athlete rising for Leopards

Lakewood’s Landon Neal wears many hats as a two-sport student athlete for the Leopards, and this year, he even added a crown to his repertoire, as he was dubbed homecoming king earlier this fall. No. 99 on the football team and No. 7 on the baseball team are his and, on the gridiron and diamond, he is known to give other teams fits.

“He would be a great story!” his head football coach John Holt said. “He is second in our senior class and homecoming king.” It was brief couple sentences that echoed the sentiment of many others in the community about the player, teammate, and person who Neal is.

He is listed at 6 feet 4 inches tall, 205 pounds, and is a senior. On the football field, he can be found wreaking havoc on offenses as a defensive end. While that position has become a hybrid linebacker in today’s modern football world, Neal elects to play it in a more classic sense, especially when the Leopards show a five-man front defensively, looking to stop the run.

The term “edge rusher” has become colloquial for both outside linebacker anddefensive end, especially at the higher echelons of the game, since there is little discernible difference in the two positions in today’s fast-paced game. Neal, though, plays more like Reggie White, Howie Long, or Dwight Freeney — often with his hand in the dirt in a three-point stance, flying through the opposition en route to wrecking a run or disrupting a pass.

Neal boasts 27 total tackles for the Leopards in their playoff season thus far, with 12 solo and 15 assists to his name. He has a commanding presence, along with his teammates on the defensive line, that has helped the Leopards roar into the fourth round after an upset of undefeated North Duplin Friday night. The Rebels couldn’t take victory from the jaws of the Leopards this time around due to Neal and the defense locking them down late in the game.

The Lakewood senior’s efforts on the gridiron this season have earned him Player of the Game four times for the Leopards: the Sept. 6 game against Lejeune, Oct. 18 vs. Hobbton, and twice during their playoff run — round one, when they hosted Northampton County Nov. 15, and their round three upset of North Duplin last Friday.

Come spring time, though, Landon will return to the baseball field for his senior season, which is where he arguably shines the most for Lakewood. His stats on the football field tell one story, but his stats on the diamond tell another — including college offers.

The lanky southpaw went 3-5 last season in 11 starts, with 45.2 innings pitched. He faced 226 batters in 179 at-bats, sending down 90 on strike outs and just 44 walks. He gave up 33 hits and 23 earned runs, giving him a 3.53 ERA. The unlucky foes that faced Neal last year had a batting average of just .184, and in his three-year career so far, he boasts a humble .207 OBA.

Humble is a good descriptor of Neal, who isn’t one to flaunt his abilities. This is true for him, even in college scouting, where the main point is to show off your success in athletics and make game film available for scouts to see. “I never really took the time to film and post and stuff,” he said, responding to a question on how the scouts for Louisburg College found him. He has verbally committed to play for the Hurricanes, which he said is due to his batting coach getting his name and film to the Hurricanes for him.

Pitcher isn’t the only position he plays, although it’s where he shines. He had a .347 batting average last season for Lakewood, getting 17 hits in 49 at-bats. He crossed the plate for 24 runs and drove in 16 of his own. His lifetime batting average at the high school level is .296, with 37 hits in 125 trips to the plate and 37 RBIs — meaning on average, he drives in a run with every single hit. He also has total 42 runs to his name.

Baseball and football weren’t the first sports the lengthy Leopard played as a child, though, but sports are something he’s been a part of since a young age. “The first sport I started playing was rec soccer when I was younger,” he said. “Then I started playing 10U baseball.” Nonetheless, his Sampson County roots have helped him no matter which sport it was that he was playing. “It’s a good place to grow up. You learn skills like discipline and hard work. As far as recruiting goes, though, you have to get out (of the county). But, it’s a good place to look for talent.”

While the comparison from the baseball field to the football field is often pitcher to quarterback for a myriad of reasons, like the arm motions and such, Neal sees a comparison elsewhere. “Something that carries over between the two is fast motion. You have to be an athlete to play both,” the soft-spoken player said.

Lakewood went 7-14 in baseball last season, and are slotted to play at Wilson Prep this Friday in the fourth round of the NCHSAA 1A football playoffs.