Seeking the ultimate test of courage, character and endurance, Neil joined the US Navy and volunteered for US Navy SEAL Training. After six months of the most grueling and difficult military training on the planet, Neil graduated from the Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL Course (BUD/S class # 168) and went on to serve at SEAL Team 3 as an elite Navy SEAL
Accomplishing everything he had set out to do as a SEAL, Neil left the military in 1995 to undertake a new set of challenges and goals; to go to college, play college football and become a filmmaker. Neil ended up at Chapman University, in Orange County, California, where he played on the football team and later was a member of Chapman's WCLL Championship Lacrosse Team. He earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Film Production from Chapman's prestigious Dodge College of Film and Media Arts, one of the leading films schools in the country.