Oregon defensive back John Neal spoke with the media at the Alamo Bowl about the upcoming game agains TCU.

With WR Josh Doctson, Garry Patterson said he’s out – Does that change at all your feelings on the wide recievers?

Well, they got a whole bunch of them but when you take one of the five best wide receivers in the country out of the game plan yeah there’s a little bit of a relief – but they’ll replace him with somebody. They got a lot of production in that team and a lot of great speed. It’s a tough break for them but it doesn’t really change anything for us. We got to figure out how to stop everybody else. We have to stop the run too.

Talk about the evolution of your secondary and how it’s progressed.

Well, we are still working at it. We aren’t anywhere we need to be. We hope this game can give us some idea because they’re going to challenge us at a high level so maybe after the game, I’ll feel a lot better about it but we got Chris (Seisay) back, so we got a healthy starter back that gives us depths, gives us a lot more knowledge and experience. The evolution is still in progress and this game is going to be a tell-tale.

Talk about DB [b]Arrion Springs. Of course he’s the local kid and how he’s improved?[/b]

Yeah, he has. Arrion’s deal is when Arrion’s on, he’s a really good player and right now he just has to be one of those kids that learns how to remain focused and for a full game. When he does, he’s really good. I expect him to be really, really good this game. There’s a lot on the line and it’s a great deal for him being from here and playing a Texas school and playing a team as good as TCU. I expect him to have his best game of his career.

Does he have the makings to be a really good corner? How so?

Absolutely. Strength, size, and he’s intelligent. And when he wants to go, he’s really good. He’s a big guy. He’s almost 210 pounds. That’s a big corner.

Does he have that short memory that corners need?

I think so. He just needs to not lose his focus and when he does, he does lose it. When he doesn’t, he’s a good player.

What are the unique challenges that QB Trevone Boykin will bring to you guys?

It just puts a great deal of stress on us. You can play perfect coverage, everything’s great, and he runs for 30 yards because he’s that talented. He can break the pocket. They got the quarterback run plays. Things that modern football has made defensive coaches hate football. He’s got it all. When he’s on, he’s really fun to watch. He’s as close to Michael Vick as I’ve seen in a while just in terms of his body movement, speed and the arm he’s got.

Quotes transcribed via the Alamo Bowl.