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This Week in HS Sports - October
23, 2009
State's rich tradition is what
makes the 'greatest' debate so great
I had seen
a poll and story some time back and, when the Trey
Williams hysteria broke out a few weeks back, went back to
look for it again. It took a couple of weeks, but I’ve found
it. Years ago, TexasHSFootball.com
posted a poll asking their forum members to vote for the
greatest Texas high school running back of all time.
In response, one reader posted a Houston
Chronicle story by Mickey Herskowitz, the
prolific sportswriter, who made a case for one Kenneth Hall
from Sugar Land High in the 1950s. The story intrigued me
then—as it still does—because I didn’t really know anything
about Hall until I read Herskowitz’s story. And it’s
legendary stuff.
According to the record books, Hall rushed for 11,232 yards
between 1950 and 1953. No other high school back had ever
reached 10,000 when the story was written (a couple have
since then, but still not surpassed Hall's totals). And he
was apparently the quintessential 1950s All-American boy,
too.
According to the story, he once “rushed for 520 yards,
scored seven touchdowns and kicked seven extra points. Then,
with the game in the second quarter, he came out.”
That’s a movie waiting to be made! In fact, Hall, who is by
all accounts alive and well in Fredericksburg, has a
nice MySpace page that, among other things, has some
clips of a documentary he has commissioned. If you love the
history of Texas high school sports, you have to visit the
site.
Hall Stadium in the Fort Bend ISD is named after him.
There’s an annual award given out to the
U.S. Army National Player of the Year named for him too.
The statuette that accompanies the award bears the likeness
of a youthful Hall, in his number 31 uniform. Some folks
remember.
He went to play at Texas A&M (which, naturally, increases my
fondness for him) after his high school days, to play for
another legend, Paul ‘Bear’ Bryant. Unfortunately, as
all-too-often happens, the high school legend never became a
college or pro legend.
Perhaps that contributes to the fact that Ken Hall slips
from our consciousness as the greatest running back of all
time. But a case can be made that there was never a greater
running back than Ken Hall of Sugar Land, Texas.
The TxHSF poll also listed a Who’s Who of Texas high school
greats, some of whom may also slide from our ever-shrinking
consciousness: Billy Sims, Robert Strait, Rodney Thomas,
Steve Worster, Earl Campbell, Eric Dickerson, Ced Benson,
David Overstreet, Warren McVea, Little Joe Washington, Doak
Walker, Adrian Peterson.
I can think of another couple that could be thrown in as
well. Others could too. In the thread, someone attempted
to make a case for a running back from a Class 2A
school—Bangs—that got little media attention. His name was
Jacoby Jones. Yep, that Jacoby Jones.
This Friday night, our crew will get another look at Daniel
Lasco of The Woodlands, a very good running back who first
drew a lot of attention as a freshman two seasons ago. He
has the potential to be a great football player, as does
Williams at Dekaney. And in Lasco or Williams, we may be
seeing the next great Texas high school legend. Williams
certainly is having a marvelous season.
But, even if neither of those young men ever achieves
legendary status, what a great tradition they have the
opportunity to be a part of. And, when it's all said and
done, it's the rich tradition of Texas high school football
that makes these debates about who is the 'greatest' the
great thing that it is.
Previous stories
:
August 15, 2009
August
20, 2009
August
26, 2009
August
31, 2009
September 8, 2009
September 16, 2009
September 18, 2009
September 25, 2009
September 28, 2009
October 5, 2009
October 7, 2009
October 15, 2009
October 19, 2009 |
