Jordan Hall’s initial thought was simple.
“I’m a basketball player.”
Already a physically dominant player on the hardwood, Hall was hesitant to take his massive size and athletic ability to a softer surface but the writing was on the wall for a football novice who had yet to even earn his learner’s permit.
“I was on the basketball court all the time,” Hall said. “My coach told me my freshman year, ‘If you come play football for me, I can get you an offer.’ At first, I was 50-50, but in reality, I was 6-8 and 340 (pounds). I’m not playing basketball.”
Hall never looked back and worked his way to becoming a prized recruit and eventually signing with UAB in last year’s recruiting cycle. Following an impressive offseason and spring practice, the redshirt freshman has created himself an opportunity to compete for a starting position on the offensive line for the upcoming 2024 season.
“Give him a lot of credit, he’s still got a long way to go but he’s really done a 180 from an intensity, buy-in, work ethic and responsibility standpoint,” UAB head coach Trent Dilfer said. “He’s always been the biggest, baddest dude with his size and it took him a while to figure out that you got to bring your best every day to compete at this level. He’s had as good an offseason as anybody in terms of flipping the script.”
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Hall joined the KIPP Columbus football team in his sophom*ore year and immediately became one of its best players. He was rated a 3-star prospect, according to the 247Sports Composite, and started receiving scholarship offers the winter before his senior season.
“It was kind of a blur, I didn’t know where it was going or where it would take me but I tried my best at it,” Hall said. “Going from high school to college and getting more reps, it takes a strong mindset. If your mind is not in it, then you’re probably not going to succeed.”
Originally committed to Jackson State and former head coach Deion Sanders, Hall transferred his pledge after Sanders accepted the head coach position at Colorado following the 2022 season. He decommitted from the Buffalos two weeks later during the early signing period and UAB entered the picture with a scholarship offer only a few days later.
Hall eventually committed and signed with the Blazers on national signing day.
“We built a really strong relationship with him and his family and realized he was going to have other action because of his traits and size,” Dilfer said. “When he sat back and realized there’s a difference between the sizzle and the substance, he chose substance.”
Hall may be one of a handful of players to be recruited by two separate Super Bowl champions but the presence of former UAB offensive lineman and current assistant director of player development Matt McCants was a key selling point.
“Honestly, it was the staff and the coaches,” Hall said. “I feel like a big reason for me coming here was Coach Matt (McCants). He’s a great person and going to push you the hardest because he wants what’s best for you. Coach Dilfer talked to me about going to the league and said if I put in the work -- I’ve already got the size -- I can make it happen.”
3 takeaways from UAB football spring game
UAB football closed out spring practice Saturday with its annual spring game at the UAB Football Operations Complex.
McCants worked in an on-field role during spring practice after former offensive line coach Eddie Gordon accepted an assistant position with the NFL’s Green Bay Packers in the offseason.
“It’s been a real blessing, I cannot thank coach enough for the opportunity to be out here and do what you feel like you’re called to do,” McCants said.
With physical traits unquestioned, Hall needed only to learn the finer details of the position and embraced the work required to become an immovable pillar of protection for the Blazers.
“It started since the first day he stepped on campus,” McCants said. “For him, it’s been a joining of ‘I haven’t had much football but how much football can I get into a short amount of time.’ He still has a ways to go, by far not a finished product, but you can see where his mindset of wanting to be successful is and that’s a result of him paying that price to be that.”
Hall dropped from 330 to 315 pounds during the offseason program and developed a critical piece of blocking ability that had been missing from his arsenal.
“The pass-blocking part, I’m not going to lie, I’m not worried about that because it’s so natural for me to pass-block,” Hall said. “It was more run-blocking where I needed to improve my leverage and flexibility. In high school, it didn’t matter, because I was bigger than everybody, but in college, you got to get low and get leverage. I had to work on those things the most.”
The 6-foot-8 lineman entered an intense competition against returning starters and prized portal additions and, in the last week of spring practice, ascended to the starting left tackle position.
Nothing is written in stone with fall camp still a few months away but Hall has solidified an opportunity to become a starter in only his fifth year playing the sport.
“It’s tremendous to see a person come in as a raw product and see themselves grow to become a great football player,” McCants said. “It’s a time-on-task type of deal and the more opportunity you get at reps and spend time on your craft, the better off you’ll be as a football player. He’s truly scratching the surface of what he can be.”
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