Kenneth Hall is the best ever. I dont know how we can argue over that. He holds the NATIONAL record for rushing yards in a career. Come on!
My grandfather was living in Rosenberg when Ken Hall played and to this day he says that he has never seen a better RB... and he's seen them all. Campbell, Benson, Danaher... you name 'em he's seen them. He still swears the only RB that ever came close to Hall was Cedric Benson. I think If Cedric could have played his freshman year, he would have come close... I don't think he would have gotten it, but he would have come close.
Cougar Football... goin for lucky #13.
Greatest Texas HS Running Back
Started by
LPanther
, Dec 14 2003 01:58 PM
220 replies to this topic
#42
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Posted 29 December 2003 - 09:41 AM
Yeah, basing this solely on a HS career I don't know how you can honestly have any other answer than Kenneth Hall.
(Nicole Frugé/Express-News)
Ken Hall (with his wife, Gloria) moved from
California to Fredericksburg in 1986 to open a
barbecue restaurant, which they sold in May.
While they were there, they made a positive
impression on the local youth.
The National Player of the year recieves the Ken Hall trophy. In other words, High Schools version of the Heisman is the Hall. link
Hall still rules nation's all-time rushing roost
Last year, Commerce's Monté Williams became the all-time leading rusher in his school's history. This year, he has a chance to break the Georgia record for career rushing yards. While those records may make Williams worth his weight in salt, he does not even come close to Sugarland.
For the next logical question could be, "Does Williams have a chance to break the national record?"
The answer would be "No."
The answer to the question is probably "Don't even ask the question."
While Williams has posted significant numbers that would make almost any high school running back envious, he is nowhere close to the all-time leader. He is just barely more than halfway to the record right now.
But that is nothing new. Ken "Sugarland Express" Hall has such a stranglehold on the national rushing record that no one has come within 2,000 yards of him for nearly 50 years.
Not Herschel Walker. Not Emmitt Smith. Not the current Georgia career leader Robert Toomer. Not anybody. No one comes close.
Hall ran for 11,232 yards in 1950-53 for Sugarland (Texas) High School. Running out of the single-wing, Hall was the feature back in the offense. He scored 899 points in his career, which is still second all-time.
Williams has made a name for himself by averaging more than 2,000 yards for his three seasons. Hall turned in 2,821 per year. It is always amazing to look at Hall's statistics.
The first night I ever worked for a newspaper, I started looking through a national record book. When I saw Hall's rushing records, I knew that no one could do more. I was wrong.
For somehow, in his four years of running 'round Texas, Hall found time to throw for 3,326 yards as well. That is a total of 14,549 yards in a career.
Hall's total yardage mark has not been eclipsed either. Not even by countless numbers of high-flying passing attacks that have come up in the past 20 years. The closest anyone has come to his total yardage was in 1996 when quarterback Romaro Miller amassed 12,315 yards.
If Williams were to rush for the 1,539 yards needed to break Toomer's Georgia career record, he would still be 3,364 yards short of Hall's mark.
If Williams could play a fifth season after setting the state record, and he rushed for 3,364 yards, that would be a mark The Sugarland Express bested twice in his four-year career.
A sure pro Hall-of-Famer, Smith gathered a staggering 8,808 high school rushing yards. That total is still almost 2,500 yards away from Hall.
Walker holds the Georgia single-season rushing record with 3,167 yards in 1979. Over 15 games, that was better than 200 yards per game.
But that is so pitiful when compared to what Hall did in 1953. Hall ran for 4,045 yards in his senior season.
Recent Tennessee Volunteer Travis Henry rushed for 4,087 yards in his senior season of high school. But it took Henry 14 games to best the total Hall had made in 12.
So it will be fun to see if the Tigers' Williams can make a run at the state record. But remember Hall and take Williams' local and state marks with a grain of, well, sugar.
Drew Brantley is the sports editor for The Commerce News and The Banks County News.
(Nicole Frugé/Express-News)
Ken Hall (with his wife, Gloria) moved from
California to Fredericksburg in 1986 to open a
barbecue restaurant, which they sold in May.
While they were there, they made a positive
impression on the local youth.
The National Player of the year recieves the Ken Hall trophy. In other words, High Schools version of the Heisman is the Hall. link
Hall still rules nation's all-time rushing roost
Last year, Commerce's Monté Williams became the all-time leading rusher in his school's history. This year, he has a chance to break the Georgia record for career rushing yards. While those records may make Williams worth his weight in salt, he does not even come close to Sugarland.
For the next logical question could be, "Does Williams have a chance to break the national record?"
The answer would be "No."
The answer to the question is probably "Don't even ask the question."
While Williams has posted significant numbers that would make almost any high school running back envious, he is nowhere close to the all-time leader. He is just barely more than halfway to the record right now.
But that is nothing new. Ken "Sugarland Express" Hall has such a stranglehold on the national rushing record that no one has come within 2,000 yards of him for nearly 50 years.
Not Herschel Walker. Not Emmitt Smith. Not the current Georgia career leader Robert Toomer. Not anybody. No one comes close.
Hall ran for 11,232 yards in 1950-53 for Sugarland (Texas) High School. Running out of the single-wing, Hall was the feature back in the offense. He scored 899 points in his career, which is still second all-time.
Williams has made a name for himself by averaging more than 2,000 yards for his three seasons. Hall turned in 2,821 per year. It is always amazing to look at Hall's statistics.
The first night I ever worked for a newspaper, I started looking through a national record book. When I saw Hall's rushing records, I knew that no one could do more. I was wrong.
For somehow, in his four years of running 'round Texas, Hall found time to throw for 3,326 yards as well. That is a total of 14,549 yards in a career.
Hall's total yardage mark has not been eclipsed either. Not even by countless numbers of high-flying passing attacks that have come up in the past 20 years. The closest anyone has come to his total yardage was in 1996 when quarterback Romaro Miller amassed 12,315 yards.
If Williams were to rush for the 1,539 yards needed to break Toomer's Georgia career record, he would still be 3,364 yards short of Hall's mark.
If Williams could play a fifth season after setting the state record, and he rushed for 3,364 yards, that would be a mark The Sugarland Express bested twice in his four-year career.
A sure pro Hall-of-Famer, Smith gathered a staggering 8,808 high school rushing yards. That total is still almost 2,500 yards away from Hall.
Walker holds the Georgia single-season rushing record with 3,167 yards in 1979. Over 15 games, that was better than 200 yards per game.
But that is so pitiful when compared to what Hall did in 1953. Hall ran for 4,045 yards in his senior season.
Recent Tennessee Volunteer Travis Henry rushed for 4,087 yards in his senior season of high school. But it took Henry 14 games to best the total Hall had made in 12.
So it will be fun to see if the Tigers' Williams can make a run at the state record. But remember Hall and take Williams' local and state marks with a grain of, well, sugar.
Drew Brantley is the sports editor for The Commerce News and The Banks County News.
Edited by Super B, 29 December 2003 - 09:46 AM.
#43
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Posted 29 December 2003 - 10:06 AM
Sugar Land legend Ken Hall has proved to be a good mentor
San Antonio Express-News
To many, he always will be the "Sugar Land Express," a mythic figure in Texas football lore.
(Nicole Frugé/Express-News)
Ken Hall (with his wife, Gloria) moved from
California to Fredericksburg in 1986 to open a
barbecue restaurant, which they sold in May.
While they were there, they made a positive
impression on the local youth.
But while his feats have become legendary since he played his last high school game 50 years ago, there is nothing mythical about Kenneth Hall.
This is a man of substance and compassion, as many in Fredericksburg and the Hill Country would attest.
In his own unassuming way, Hall is as remarkable today as he was when he set 17 national high school records in rushing, scoring and total offense while playing running back for the Sugar Land Gators from 1950-53.
Hall, who turned 68 on Dec. 13, has made a difference in the lives of young people as a businessman and mentor since moving from California to Fredericksburg in 1986 to open a barbecue restaurant.
"He is one of the most amazing men I've ever met," said T.J. Theis, a 2000 Fredericksburg graduate who worked for Hall. "I came from a single-parent household, so he was like a father figure to me."
Although Hall and his wife, Gloria, sold their business in May, they remain close to many of the 66 part-time employees they hired while they owned the restaurant.
"You don't have a business for more than 17 years and not miss the people you worked with," Gloria said.
With Christmas only days away, several former employees have called the Halls to express their holiday wishes.
"That's what makes all those years at the barbecue place special," Ken said. "These kids became important to our lives."
The Halls' two sons, Chuck, 45, and Michael, 42, live in California.
"With our kids gone, I think sometimes we have looked at the kids who worked for us as being our own," Ken said. "We enjoyed their activities. They kept us young and kept us going."
Most of the part-time employees were students at Fredericksburg High School when they started working for the Halls.
"I never fully appreciated the lessons and values that Ken taught me until years later," Jason White said Monday. "But I know I wouldn't be here if I hadn't known him and worked for him.
"I didn't have a father when I was growing up and I knew I was a pain, a headstrong high school kid. But Ken is one of the most patient men I ever met. He put me on the right path. Gloria was right there, too."
Now 31, White graduated from the University of Texas at Tyler in 2001 with a marketing degree and is a property manager in Raleigh, N.C.
Another ex-employee, Malachi Boyuls, is attending law school at Seton Hall in Newark, N.J.
"Ken really set me straight," said Boyuls, 24. "He expected you to do your job, be on time and be responsible. You didn't realize you were going to learn life lessons from this man at a barbecue restaurant — but you did."
Hall is one of Texas high school football's greatest icons.
He ran for an incredible 11,232 yards in four seasons — although he never played more than 12 games in one year and sat out the second half of many games because Sugar Land led comfortably at halftime.
Six of Hall's national records, including the one for career rushing, still stood heading into the 2003 season.
Fittingly, the award given to the national high school football player of the year is named the Hall Trophy.
"The funny thing is, Ken never would talk about that unless you asked him about it," said Boyuls, a 1998 Fredericksburg graduate. "And you'd have to work there for more than a year for him to do that. He's very humble."
Although Ken has an easygoing personality, he was a firm boss who had high expectations of his employees. He drew on his experience as an athlete to prosper as a businessman.
"We were a team," he said. "It was a group effort, and we always emphasized that."
If there was a problem, the employee usually had a meeting with Ken at a picnic table under the oak tree by the restaurant.
"He'd say, 'Let's go have a talk,'" Boyuls said. "It didn't happen often, but when it did, it was serious and you better listen. Everybody had a talk with him under that oak tree at one time or another."
Said Theis: "He treated us with respect and therefore we wanted to treat him with respect because of the kind of man that he is."
Ken said that working with young people was rewarding and challenging, but never boring.
"We've always loved kids," he said. "It was not by design, but so many of the kids that worked for us came from broken homes. They were looking for a heart to grab hold of. It was like they were saying, 'I don't want to ask for help, but if you're willing, I'll accept.'
"But you can't help them all. It wasn't all glory. It's not a panacea. Some didn't make it, but we're awfully proud of the ones who did."
That pride is obvious.
San Antonio Express-News
To many, he always will be the "Sugar Land Express," a mythic figure in Texas football lore.
(Nicole Frugé/Express-News)
Ken Hall (with his wife, Gloria) moved from
California to Fredericksburg in 1986 to open a
barbecue restaurant, which they sold in May.
While they were there, they made a positive
impression on the local youth.
But while his feats have become legendary since he played his last high school game 50 years ago, there is nothing mythical about Kenneth Hall.
This is a man of substance and compassion, as many in Fredericksburg and the Hill Country would attest.
In his own unassuming way, Hall is as remarkable today as he was when he set 17 national high school records in rushing, scoring and total offense while playing running back for the Sugar Land Gators from 1950-53.
Hall, who turned 68 on Dec. 13, has made a difference in the lives of young people as a businessman and mentor since moving from California to Fredericksburg in 1986 to open a barbecue restaurant.
"He is one of the most amazing men I've ever met," said T.J. Theis, a 2000 Fredericksburg graduate who worked for Hall. "I came from a single-parent household, so he was like a father figure to me."
Although Hall and his wife, Gloria, sold their business in May, they remain close to many of the 66 part-time employees they hired while they owned the restaurant.
"You don't have a business for more than 17 years and not miss the people you worked with," Gloria said.
With Christmas only days away, several former employees have called the Halls to express their holiday wishes.
"That's what makes all those years at the barbecue place special," Ken said. "These kids became important to our lives."
The Halls' two sons, Chuck, 45, and Michael, 42, live in California.
"With our kids gone, I think sometimes we have looked at the kids who worked for us as being our own," Ken said. "We enjoyed their activities. They kept us young and kept us going."
Most of the part-time employees were students at Fredericksburg High School when they started working for the Halls.
"I never fully appreciated the lessons and values that Ken taught me until years later," Jason White said Monday. "But I know I wouldn't be here if I hadn't known him and worked for him.
"I didn't have a father when I was growing up and I knew I was a pain, a headstrong high school kid. But Ken is one of the most patient men I ever met. He put me on the right path. Gloria was right there, too."
Now 31, White graduated from the University of Texas at Tyler in 2001 with a marketing degree and is a property manager in Raleigh, N.C.
Another ex-employee, Malachi Boyuls, is attending law school at Seton Hall in Newark, N.J.
"Ken really set me straight," said Boyuls, 24. "He expected you to do your job, be on time and be responsible. You didn't realize you were going to learn life lessons from this man at a barbecue restaurant — but you did."
Hall is one of Texas high school football's greatest icons.
He ran for an incredible 11,232 yards in four seasons — although he never played more than 12 games in one year and sat out the second half of many games because Sugar Land led comfortably at halftime.
Six of Hall's national records, including the one for career rushing, still stood heading into the 2003 season.
Fittingly, the award given to the national high school football player of the year is named the Hall Trophy.
"The funny thing is, Ken never would talk about that unless you asked him about it," said Boyuls, a 1998 Fredericksburg graduate. "And you'd have to work there for more than a year for him to do that. He's very humble."
Although Ken has an easygoing personality, he was a firm boss who had high expectations of his employees. He drew on his experience as an athlete to prosper as a businessman.
"We were a team," he said. "It was a group effort, and we always emphasized that."
If there was a problem, the employee usually had a meeting with Ken at a picnic table under the oak tree by the restaurant.
"He'd say, 'Let's go have a talk,'" Boyuls said. "It didn't happen often, but when it did, it was serious and you better listen. Everybody had a talk with him under that oak tree at one time or another."
Said Theis: "He treated us with respect and therefore we wanted to treat him with respect because of the kind of man that he is."
Ken said that working with young people was rewarding and challenging, but never boring.
"We've always loved kids," he said. "It was not by design, but so many of the kids that worked for us came from broken homes. They were looking for a heart to grab hold of. It was like they were saying, 'I don't want to ask for help, but if you're willing, I'll accept.'
"But you can't help them all. It wasn't all glory. It's not a panacea. Some didn't make it, but we're awfully proud of the ones who did."
That pride is obvious.
#44
LPanther
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Posted 29 December 2003 - 01:27 PM
Super B,
Thanks for the articles. If you base your vote on HS achievements as was the intent of this poll, it seems to me Ken Hall has to be the answer. Although Campbell was a great one, I think he received more votes because more people are familiar with him. To me, the key stat is that Hall never played more than 12 games in a season.
Thanks for the articles. If you base your vote on HS achievements as was the intent of this poll, it seems to me Ken Hall has to be the answer. Although Campbell was a great one, I think he received more votes because more people are familiar with him. To me, the key stat is that Hall never played more than 12 games in a season.
#45
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Posted 29 December 2003 - 01:40 PM
Another problem is that when comparing era's it's almost impossible to be objective. Earl Campbell was the most legendary, because of the combinations of having a great HS career & being on The University of Texas Longhorns, winning a Heisman Trophy & having a All-Pro Career for Houston in the NFL. He stayed in Texas his entire football career and because of that he is the most legendary, well-known guy.Super B,
Thanks for the articles. If you base your vote on HS achievements as was the intent of this poll, it seems to me Ken Hall has to be the answer. Although Campbell was a great one, I think he received more votes because more people are familiar with him. To me, the key stat is that Hall never played more than 12 games in a season.
Eric Dickerson had the best Pro career, by far on that list, yet they recognized his HS career was not as good as the others.
You are correct though, to me it is an open & shut case.
#46
Lamar'85
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Posted 30 December 2003 - 08:01 AM
undefinedHe stayed in Texas his entire football career and because of that he is the most legendary, well-known guy.
Super B.
Almost his whole career. Don't forget that he ended his career as a New Orlean Saint.
#47
Super B
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Posted 30 December 2003 - 09:35 AM
Yeah, I knew that, But basically his whole football career, he wasn't with NO long.undefinedHe stayed in Texas his entire football career and because of that he is the most legendary, well-known guy.
Super B.
Almost his whole career. Don't forget that he ended his career as a New Orlean Saint.
#49
jt_northwest
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Posted 02 July 2004 - 07:22 PM
what about ladanian tomlison? although he is young many say he will be one of the greats.
#50
Colts2Win
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Posted 04 July 2004 - 09:29 PM
How 'bout....
1)....Earl Campbell
2)....Billy Sims
3)....Ken Hall
4)....Cedric Benson
5)....Eric Dickerson
1)....Earl Campbell
2)....Billy Sims
3)....Ken Hall
4)....Cedric Benson
5)....Eric Dickerson
#51
Guest_ThetaChi338_*
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Posted 07 July 2004 - 05:19 AM
You have Benson ahead of Dickerson, are you crazy. Dickerson is in the Hall Of Fame, Benson might not even make it out of Austin alive.
#52
LPanther
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Posted 07 July 2004 - 05:42 AM
This is based on their HS career, not what they did in the NFL.You have Benson ahead of Dickerson, are you crazy. Dickerson is in the Hall Of Fame, Benson might not even make it out of Austin alive.
#53
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Posted 07 July 2004 - 06:02 AM
I know it says best RB in high school but it also says best running back to come out of Texas, so that is my logic.
#54
Eagle 1
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Posted 07 July 2004 - 01:27 PM
LOL....Instant classic.You have Benson ahead of Dickerson, are you crazy. Dickerson is in the Hall Of Fame, Benson might not even make it out of Austin alive.
#55
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Posted 20 October 2004 - 07:10 AM
I would go with ken hall on this one.
go tigers!
go tigers!
#56
KingFan
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Posted 20 October 2004 - 08:21 AM
I saw someone mention Wes Danaher, and said that he was the best back, WRONG. He has daddy padded stats. 1st yes he started as a freshman, but he should have been a sophmore. He was not the best back in thier backfeild. Michael Booker was. wes played in somehting like 52 games in high school. he really padded his stats because his dad would give him the ball until he reached his numbers for the night. he wasn't even the best back on the field in several of thier playoff games. They talked trash about LaDanina tomlinson before they playesd him, look where he is now. Dedrick Foster from La Marque made him look like a jr high back in thier game. And as for his "scholarship" to SMU that was a half and his parents were paying the other half. If he was so good why did no one recruit him? And his injury was not a big deal he got to SMU and found out he could not play with them, so he hung em up with some help from a nicely timed injury. When I was at W.T. our coaches did not even want him. That says something.
Dickerson , or campbell.
Best I saw this year was Jerrel Wilkerson from SA Clark.
Dickerson , or campbell.
Best I saw this year was Jerrel Wilkerson from SA Clark.
#57
dukie06
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Posted 23 October 2004 - 10:10 AM
Wheres Doak Walker from Highland Park? Last I checked there was an award named after him. Does that ring a bell to anyone?
#58
cal
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Posted 23 October 2004 - 10:22 AM
i am only 18 and i know who ken hall is this board is full of HS Football fanatics and so few know of the sugarland express. IMO he is the god of all hs running backs
#59
LPanther
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Posted 23 October 2004 - 11:30 AM
Wheres Doak Walker from Highland Park? Last I checked there was an award named after him. Does that ring a bell to anyone?
His name was mentioned in an earlier quote. Read back through. He was a good one, but hard to list everyone.
#60
UofODuck
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Posted 26 October 2004 - 04:15 PM
Adrian Peterson is the best RB I have ever seen. Better than Herchel Walker, Clarett, Dickerson, and Dupree.
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