Football remains a sanctuary for South Gate receiver Jamaal Neal

There’s a framed illustration hanging in the South Gate High weight room that depicts All-City football receiver Jamaal Neal wearing a red Nevada Las Vegas uniform and looking out at the casinos on the Las Vegas Strip as storm clouds muster in the sky.

So far, the 17-year-old senior hasn’t let a series of traumatic experiences hinder his ambitions of going to college, playing football and making his mother proud.

Neal has been an orphan for more than a year. His father died when he was 2. His mother, Vickie Williams, died at age 46 on April 25, 2015, of “heart disease, fatty liver disease and pulmonary emphysema,” according to a coroner’s report.

“My mom was an alcoholic,” Jamaal said.

Jamaal’s sister called him on a Saturday to tell him the news. He didn’t believe it. He was staying with a friend, and as he headed home he saw a post on his Facebook page: “Condolences to your family.”

It was not until he saw his mom lying on her bed that reality hit him.

“Her face was cold and her eyes were wide open,” he said. “Being her baby, I was able to call her no matter what time of the day and say, ‘Momma, momma,’ and she’d wake up. For her not to wake up for me, it broke me.… I still needed her.”

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South Gate receiver lost his father and mother, but remains determined to succeed. 

For two weeks, during his sophomore year, Jamaal stayed home trying to heal. Friends on the football team sent messages of support. He thought long and hard, tried to remember things his mother told him.

“At the end of the day, my mom was a tough woman, strong-willed,” he said. “She always told me no matter what, I need to keep pushing. No matter what happened, I had to live.”

He went back to class and back to playing football.

“My football is going to take me a long way, but my knowledge in the classroom is what’s going to help me out for the rest of my life,” he said.

Coach Jose Casagran admires Jamaal’s resiliency.

“He kept going forward,” he said. “He kept his eye on the prize.”

Jamaal is living with his godbrother and godmother. He’s 6 feet 2, 220 pounds, plays receiver, running back, defensive back and linebacker. He’s a physical, tough player. Last week, he caught five passes for 131 yards and one touchdown against Arleta.

UNLV liked what they saw from his junior season and offered him a scholarship last May. He committed.

He remains a positive, determined teenager who speaks with a bluntness that leaves strangers in awe of his maturity.

He said that at 13 he started throwing out his mother’s bottles or filling them up with water, trying to prevent her from drinking. He even went to the local store pleading with them not to sell her alcohol.

“I know the bottles don’t lead nowhere except the wrong direction,” Jamaal said. “I tried my best to help.”

Football kept him focused on the future.

“Some think it’s just a game, banging heads,” he said. “It’s part of my life. This is my getaway. There’s nothing else I’ve done in life that relaxes me as much as football. This has been my dream since I was a little kid.”

He intends to keep moving forward, comforted by what he learned from his mother.

“I still need her to this day,” he said, “but her lessons help me carry through in life.”

eric.sondheimer@latimes.com

Twitter: @latsondheimer