by Matt Cooke '04
When the University of West Georgia hired Will Hall to be the head coach of the football program, his leadership ability was at the forefront of that decision. He was known to be a young and fiery coach, but his ability to mentor young men and mold them became a catalyst for a run to the NCAA Division II semifinals.
He brought to West Georgia his motto, “Attitude is Everything,” which led to the New Era New Attitude slogan used for the UWG football program during the previous fall. But “AIE” is how Coach Hall lives his life, and it is what he pours into his players and his staff. The three letters are used in team huddles before and after practice and “AIE” permeates his program.
Coach Hall is the son of a football coach, so it could be said that leadership is in his blood. He cites his father and former coach Mark Hudspeth as two of the biggest influences on the way he has learned how to be a leader.
“My father, like many fathers, was a huge influence on me as a leader,” Coach Hall said. “He showed me how important it is for a leader to be very confident and to show that confidence in every decision that you make.”
Hudspeth, who was the head coach at the University of North Alabama when Coach Hall won the Harlon Hill trophy as a senior, also taught him about leadership. “His mantra as a leader and what he taught me as his quarterback was that the speed of the leader is the speed of the pack, so if I couldn’t make a decision or get on the right page, then the whole team would be in the exact same place.”
Coach Hall not only learned about being a leader from two prominent role models while he was maturing into a coach, but he also gained his knowledge from reading books about coaching and history.
“Great leaders lead from the front, leading the charge into the battle, not standing on a hill watching the fight,” said Coach Hall. “Whatever time of year it is, whether during practice or in the weight room in the offseason, I want to be in the fight and where the action is.”
But all of that led Hall to take on the motto of “Attitude is Everything.” It is what anyone can read on the door when you walk in his office and for the coach, it is about more than just football.
When Coach Hall arrived at West Georgia, the first thing that he felt he needed to do was to establish a base. For anyone who walks through the halls of the football offices in the Athletic Operations Building, Coach Hall’s base is staring them in the face with his “Six Core Values.”
“You have to teach your players how to be successful, not only in football, but in life and these core values were put up to establish that foundation,” Coach Hall said. “These are things that matter in any relationship, no matter if it is with your wife, mother, father, coach, or teammate.”
The six core values begin with Honesty at the top, followed by Use Great Judgment and Be Accountable. The fourth value is The Golden Rule, followed by Project Positive Energy and Find a Way.
“When you make good decisions, you get good consequences and the latter is also true,” Coach Hall said. “I believe in treating others the way you would want to be treated, attitudes are contagious, energies are contagious, and no one likes to be around an excuse-maker.
“That’s the baseline of our program. If we can have those six things as the base for our program, then we will always be headed in the right direction, both in life and on the field.”
The impact of Coach Hall’s leadership was on display again during the Super Bowl, as the New England Patriots’ Malcolm Butler, who was recruited and coached by Coach Hall at the University of West Alabama, created the game-winning interception. But even after the big game, Butler was still giving credit to the team, and that is what Coach Hall is instilling in his players.
A team will take on the attributes of its leader in almost every situation. Coach Hall’s positive energy has already led to great success, and everyone is excited to see what happens in the 2015 season.
This article originally appeared in the spring 2015 edition of Perspective magazine.
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