Corey Hall
Corey Hall was as pleased as anyone to see Appalachian State win its first national championship in 2005.
Hall, a former all-America defensive back who was inducted into ASU’s athletics hall of fame last Saturday, came close to a shot at a national title in 2000.
“I guess you could say we were literally a couple inches away from playing for a national championship,” Hall said.
On a snowy, 28-degree day in December of 2000 at Missoula, Montana, the Mountaineers’ chance at a first national title ended.
Jimmy Farris caught a 15-yard touchdown pass from Drew Miller to give the Montana Grizzlies a 19-16 victory over the Mountaineers in the NCAA Division I-AA semifinals.
Hall was defending on the play.
“I think about it every now and then,” Hall said. “(Farris) ran a fade route and I had good position on him. I won’t make any excuses, but it was slippery, and I guess when I went up to defend the pass it just barely skimmed right over my hand. The guy just made a great catch.”
Hall and Farris both wound up in the NFL. Hall was drafted in the seventh round by the Atlanta Falcons and played three games in 2001. He now works with his brothers Joey and Kendrick, both former ASU players, for his father’s concrete contracting business near Atlanta.
He was on hand when ASU beat Northern Iowa for the national title in 2005.
“That was huge,” Hall said. “When I came here, Appalachian already had a winning tradition and I wanted to contribute to that. We got pretty close to making it all the way. To see the same coaches that were here when I was here actually win the national championship felt really good.
“I saw a lot of the former guys there, and we all felt part of it. It was great to see them take it to the next level.”