The Brothers O'Neil: Forming a family legacy

Where the last name ends so do the resemblances. The first pair of brothers to play for Penn since Warren and Patrick Buehler in 1983 and 1984, sophomore David and junior Doug O'Neill have contrasting styles both on the field and off, disguising their close relationship. Through their differences, the O'Neill's have created the backbone of a receiving corp that ranks second in the Ivy League. "A couple of the guys on the team didn't even know that we were brothers until a couple of weeks ago," Doug said. From his days in high school, Doug, was always seen as the stern, hard-working, All-American type. "Doug is serious about what we are doing," Penn wide receivers coach Rick Ulrich said. "He is one of the more coachable guys that I have ever had to deal with. It is a very good luxury for me to have a guy like him around because he does everything to the letter." Dave, on the other hand, is what many call a "free spirit." "Davey is my pinball machine," William O'Neill said. "There is definitely a different drummer in his head." As a receiver, Doug is known for his great hands. The older O'Neill earned himself a reputation at Howell High School in Howell, New Jersey, for being able to bring down any ball in his vicinity. "One thing he had were his hands," Howell High School football coach Cory Davies said. "He almost never dropped a pass. The first time he dropped one was junior year, and that was like a big thing. Everybody said that he finally dropped one." Dave's athletic ability makes up for anything else he might be lacking. His astonishing speed and maneuverability make it difficult for defensive backs to keep him away from the ball. "Dave is a speed type receiver," Davies said. "He can get deep and create lot of other problems with defenses." More impressive for Dave is the way things come so naturally to him, especially his confidence. "Every sport he plays, Dave automatically thinks he is going to be the best player on the field," William said. "Doug, on the other hand, waits until he learns the sport. It takes Doug a while to play with confidence. Davey plays with confidence the first shot out." Although the two are only a year apart, their first time playing at the same time came here at Penn. Doug spent all four years at Howell High School while David spent his first three at the Christian Brothers Academy before transferring to Howell. · During his four years, Doug evolved into one of the best all-around players in the history of Howell High School. His ability to play any position on the field allowed him to play defensive back, return punts, return kicks, kick-off, kick field goals, long-snap on punts, and of course excel as wide receiver. "We used to kid around with Doug his senior year that he should drive the bus because he was doing just about everything else for us," Davies said. During Doug's high school career, Howell improved to its best mark in school history. Doug's 11 interceptions his senior year set a new school record. Still, the All-State defensive back told the recruiters that he wanted to play receiver in college. After spending his freshman year learning the ropes, Doug emerged as the Quakers primary passing target last year, leading the Quakers with 32 receptions and 430 yards. In his third year on the team Doug has quickly emerged not only as Penn's go-to-receiver, but also as a player that the rest of the wideouts can look up to. "The wide receivers really look at Doug as a leader because he is really only one of the experienced guys from last year," Penn quarterback Matt Rader said. "People respect you if you get on the field and perform. Doug is not a real vocal guy. He is a guy that leads by example." In the Ivy League this season, O'Neill ranks fourth with 423 yards receiving, fourth with 33 receptions, and 14th with 18 points scored. "I feel like more of a leader than a follower," Doug said. "Last year there were some guys that I looked up to, played along with, and learned from. This year I feel like I am one of the guys some of the younger guys can look up to." · Instead of feeling pressured to live up to the success of his brother, Dave enjoyed the way the players and coaches in high school teased him about living up to his brother's performance. "Every time in practice they would use Doug as a tool to push me," Dave said. "If I dropped something they would say, 'Doug would have caught that.' If I would make a nice play, they would say, 'Who is the other O'Neill? Doug something?' It loosened up practice and made me try harder." Dave wasted little time in making a name for himself. As a senior in his first season in organized football, Dave set a Howell High School record with over 1,000 yards receiving, averaging more than 30 yards a catch. "When I first heard he was coming, I was hoping that he was as good as his brother Doug," Davies said. "We got into a passing type thing in the summer time and got a good idea that he was going to be pretty darn good." The younger O'Neill chose Penn for several reasons -- his brother being one of them. "Dave picked it probably because his brother did," William O'Neill said. "He likes city life, and it was the first chance he ever had to play football with his brother." Doug has aided his younger brother's transition from high school to college. "Doug is always the one who keeps me under control as a person," Dave said. "He helped me out a lot with the plays last year and taught me what to do and what to expect from the coaches." In his second year at Penn, Dave has made his presence known, throughout the team and the Ivy League. Especially key was the Quakers' October 10 game at Fordham. Headed by fellow wideout Brandon Carson, the O'Neill's along with Carson and Penn receiver David Rogers, bleached their hair blonde before the game against the Rams. Unfortunately, it came out orange. "I tried to dissuade them to doing anything the night before a game," Ulrich said. "But, I said, 'If you guys are willing to hold up your end of the bargain tomorrow and play your asses on the field, I don't think too many people are going to care much about it.'" The receivers had their best game so far this season, amassing 20 receptions for 265 yards and three touchdowns. The play of the game came with 4 seconds remaining in the first half as Dave caught his first collegiate touchdown, a 39-yard bomb from Matt Rader. What came after the touchdown was one of the most memorable moments from this year's season. Keeping a promise he made earlier to his teammates, Dave celebrated his first touchdown by spiking the ball and going head over heels into a backflip. "We have been talking all year long about what touchdown dances we were going to do," Rogers said. "When I was sitting on the sidelines, I was like, 'Yeah, he scored!" I was never expecting him to do it." The excessive celebration caused the referees to pull the yellow flag. While Penn place-kicker Jason Feinberg was unable to connect on the 35-yard extra-point attempt, the Quakers still came away with the 34-31 victory. "I never thought I had the guts to actually do it," Dave said. "I don't remember spiking the ball. But right in the middle of my backflip, I thought, 'Oh man, I am going to get in so much trouble.'" While Dave respects his brother for being the Quakers top receiver, the younger O'Neill would just as soon be the man in the spotlight. This season David has caught eight passes for 134 yards and one touchdown. "I would love to be the leading receiver right now instead of him," Dave said. "I like seeing him being the leading receiver. If I get a chance, and I am not injured, I would just as soon get in there and make some catches." David has not seen the playing field in the last game and a half. Against Columbia almost three weeks ago, David severely sprained his ankle. While he will most likely not be playing in this weekend's game against Yale, the younger O'Neill is expected to play against Princeton on November 7. "Dave's injury is going to put a little bit more pressure on on us right now," Doug said. "We don't have that many receivers that are healthy. So we are all going to have to play a little bit more than we have been playing and and a little bit better." Although the two are so different, they get along like good friends. Each has found his own place to fit in. "I know I am completely different from my brother," Dave said. "He keeps me under control, and I bring out the wild side in him. I think the fact that we are so different makes us click." The O'Neill family enjoys being able to watch both of their sons play football for Penn, but it has raised some difficult moments. "The first time Davey got any playing time, they had them both on the field," William said. "My wife said,'Who do I watch?'" As the O'Neill brothers have swept into Penn they have helped the Quakers succeed so far this season. While they have different styles and different personalities, they both know how to catch -- just ask the defensive backs in the rest of the Ivy League.

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