Ivy League Worthy, Sparkman’s Kenny Hall Selects The Naval Academy; Escapes Near-Death Accident
HARVEST- Sparkman football player Kenny Hall has been named to the Alabama Academic All-America Team by High School Football America. The senior defensive back for the Senators is ready for his last season with the Class 7A program and looks forward to advancing his education in college and playing the sport he took up as a youth in the second grade.
His trek through the recruiting process has been one of colossal proportions as he received at least 10 offers from colleges including six of the eight Ivy League universities. After innumerable hours of consideration on which school to attend once he graduates from Sparkman, Hall chose the Naval Academy for his college education and his chance to play college football.
“I never thought I’d join the military though I have grandfathers and uncles who were in the service,” said Hall. “The Naval Academy I feel is a place I can grow athletically and academically. Besides, one of the deciding factors in making my choice for the Naval Academy is how they accommodated my mother upon my visit to the school. Due to recent injuries, my mother was limited on her being able to walk through the campus and the school provided her with a golf cart to help her get around.”
Hall, his mother, Kendra, and his father, Ray, were all involved in a near-death auto accident on the I-565 ramp headed south over I-65 on Feb. 13. The young Hall came within inches of being run-over by an 18-wheeler on the icy roads as the family was headed to Thompson High for a 7-on-7 football competition. Kendra’s right leg was severely injured in the accident as they exited their car to try and avoided the oncoming truck. Hall said, “As I got out of the car I fell on the ice and my father pulled me out of the way of the truck. I was nicked by the truck where I suffered a slight shoulder injury. My mother was partly in the car when the truck stuck our vehicle and her leg was crushed. She was in the wreckage for a long time until rescuers used the ‘jaws of life’ to get her out. We were all very lucky.”
The accident is currently in litigation.
In 2020, Hall had 21 solo tackles, 23 assists, one interception, 20 passes defended and one fumble recovery. The 5-foot-10, 175-pound defensive back has a 4.5 in the 40. In the classroom, he has a 4.17 grade point average and scored a 24 on his ACT. Besides excellent talent on the football field, Hall feels very secure on the academic side of being a student-athlete.
“I feel like I could attend the Ivy League schools and I know each are very hard academically, but I feel I can handle those situations,” said Hall. “My parents have always stressed academics. It’s really amazing to receive all of these offers.”
The schools placing a huge interest in Hall’s talent on and off the football field include Princeton, Harvard, Dartmouth, Yale, Columbia, Penn, Furman, Richmond, Alabama A&M and Navy.
“Kenny is a great young man who deserves all of what he’s receiving,” said Laron White, head coach of the Sparkman football program. “He and has dad work and train more than most I’ve ever seen here at Sparkman. Kenny is very humble, tough and his grades in the classroom shows you what type of person he is.”
Like in the classroom, Hall is very aggressive on the playing field from his position and many feel his most useful tactic he uses is his willingness to come up quick on plays and make tackles. The action of being aggressive stems from the years of instruction from his father who stressed to Hall not to be afraid and pursue plays on the field.
“I feel I have a strong upper body to handle a lot of the plays I have to make,” added Hall. “I have what I feel is a high football IQ as I read plays, make quick decisions and believe I’m a vocal leader.”
Playing on the Sparkman varsity squad since a sophomore Hall wears the same pre-game clothing at each game which includes a red, long-sleeve shirt, with neon blue underwear underneath gray Under Armour shorts along with Adidas shoes. He admitted he does his routine for good luck. He grew up a fan of Alabama football and says his favorite player is receiver Amari Cooper, former Tide superstar who now plays for the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys.
Besides being a member of the National Honor Society and a tough, hard-nosed tackler on the football field, Hall also has a soft side about him. As a great way to relax and get away from the stress associated with both athletics and academics, Hall and his mother curl up in bed in the master bedroom and watch movies together. He said it’s a great time for both of them.
“My parents have been my biggest inspirations and during the COVID times we have grown even closer,” said Hall. “I hope what I’m doing in the classroom and on the football field will be seen by younger people and see they can do it as well.”
