by Matt Cooke
University of West Georgia Head Football Coach Will Hall has received another entry into his ever-growing and impressive resume, as he will be one of 15 athletic standouts inducted into the Mississippi Community and Junior College Sports Hall of Fame on Tuesday, April 29.
"This is such a tremendous honor for me given the outstanding history that Northwest and the Mississippi Junior College system has," Will says. "I'm so blessed to have played there when I did, because I had such a great group of players there with me and we were able to be very successful."
The induction ceremony is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the Muse Center on the Hinds-Rankin campus in Pearl, Mississippi, with a reception at 6:30 p.m. to begin the seventh annual program. A native of Amory, Mississippi, Will broke multiple school records as a quarterback for the Northwest Mississippi Community College Rangers during the 1999-2000 seasons.
"This is such a tremendous honor for Coach Hall to receive this induction into the Mississippi Community and Junior College Sports Hall of Fame," says UWG Athletic Director Daryl Dickey. "We are proud to have Will as our coach here at UWG and congratulate him on this honor."
Will was named the 17th head coach at the University of West Georgia in November and he will enter his first season with the Wolves in August. He just recently finished the first six practices of spring with his new team and will finish up his first spring practice schedule with the Spring Game on April 11 at 7 p.m. in University Stadium.
Will helped quarterback Northwest to a combined 21-1 record in his two seasons, winning a state championship as a freshman and setting the NJCAA record for total points in a season (559) his sophomore year during a perfect 10-0 campaign. He was inducted into the Northwest Hall of Fame in 2012.
His single-game records include first, second and third in passing yards during the 2000 season with 602 against East Mississippi, 514 against Holmes and 434 against Gulf Coast. He's also first in a single-game in passing touchdowns with nine against East Mississippi, also an NJCAA record at that time. Will had 46 pass attempts against East Mississippi and 45 against Hinds, which rank him sixth and seventh, respectively.
Will's 2000 single-season records include first in passing yards (3,982), pass completions (248), attempts (366), passing touchdowns (48), total offense (4,075 yards) and a 67.8 percent completion rate. His Northwest career records include first all-time in touchdown passes (57) and completion percentage (64.7), second in passing yards (5,045) and attempts (481), fourth in pass completions (311) and fifth in pass attempts (481).
He played two seasons at University of North Alabama following his career at Northwest, winning the Division II Harlon Hill Player of the Year Award and being named an All-American after leading the Lions to a 13-1 record in 2003. He set 16 UNA records and continues to hold the record for completion percentage (68 percent) in a career and a season (71.8 percent), and his string of 168 pass attempts without an interception remains at UNA.
Will played the 2004 season for the Tupelo FireAnts of the National Indoor Football League, passing for 2,046 yards and 44 touchdowns and also rushing for 422 yards and 13 TDs. He played under his father, Bobby Hall.
Will started his coaching career as the quarterbacks coach at Presbyterian College in 2004 and went on to coach single seasons at Henderson State, Southwest Baptist and Arkansas-Monticello. He was the offensive coordinator for the 2008-10 seasons at West Alabama and was later promoted to head coach for the 2011-13 seasons, posting a 25-11 record and leading the Tigers to back-to-back Gulf South Conference Championships and a pair of Division II playoff appearances.
