While playing for Brown at LSU, O'Neal was a two-time All-American, two-time SEC Player of the Year, and received the Adolph Rupp Trophy as NCAA men's basketball player of the year in 1991; he was also named college player of the year by AP and UPI.
За три года обучения в университете, О'Нил дважды выбирался в символическую сборную All-American, став двукратным игроком года конференции SEC и получил награду Адольфа Раппа, как игрок года NCAA в 1991 году.