Rashon Powers-Neal has an older brother Leon Neal who played running back at the University of Washington. Leon was a 6th round pick by the Buffalo Bills in 1996 and spent two seasons with the Indianapolis Colts. Rashon is the cousin of Notre Dame tight end Marcus Freeman and offensive lineman Ryan Harris. Rashon played football, basketball and ran track at Cretin-Derham Hall High School in St. Paul, Minnesota. He played running back, receiver, linebacker, safety and cornerback during his four years at Cretin-Derham Hall. As a junior, Rashon rushed for 961 yards and scored 22 touchdowns, helping his team to a 13-0 record. As a senior he ran for 1,938 yards and 30 touchdowns (a Minnesota single-season record). He also had 447 receiving yards and 8 more touchdowns. His team finished with a 12-2 record, losing to Eden Prairie in the state championship game. Rashon was named all-state as both a running back and linebacker his senior season. He was recruited by Notre Dame as a linebacker and didn’t see any playing time in 2001. In 2002 he moved the offensive side of the ball where he rushed for 333 yards as a reserve tailback. He also played special teams. He started 8 games at fullback in 2003 and 4 games in 2004 As a senior Rashon carried the ball 31 times for 100 yards and a career high 6 rushing touchdowns. He caught 9 passes for 90 yards as a receiver out of the backfield. Rahson has his bachelor’s degree in finance and is currently working on his master’s degree.

Rashon Powers-Neal is a versatile player who is solid in a lot of areas but not spectacular in any one area. He runs hard, breaks tackles and is tough to bring down but lacks the speed to play tailback in the NFL. He is a very good short yardage and goal line back who scored 6 touchdowns in limited action as a senior. He is also a very good receiver out of the backfield and a capable blocker. He has been a durable player with no major injuries in his career. He missed time as a senior due to a suspension for driving under the influence. He needs to improve his blocking and receiving to become a more complete fullback at the professional level. Rashon Powers-Neal is a versatile player who could develop into a good NFL fullback. He has a chance to be a mid-round pick in April.