QUEEN CREEK, Ariz. — Max Hall is a name that still echoes in Provo.
The winningest quarterback in BYU history, Hall racked up 32 victories during his collegiate career, etching his name into the Cougar legacy with moments fans still replay in their minds.
There was the unforgettable 4th-and-18 conversion to Austin Collie against rival Utah and the game-winning touchdown strike to McKay Jacobson that stunned No. 3 Oklahoma in the 2009 season-opener.
And, of course, there was the fiery postgame press conference after Andrew George’s overtime heroics against the Utes, where Hall famously declared: “I hate them, I hate everything about them.”
After BYU, Hall saw the NFL stage briefly with the Arizona Cardinals and later joined the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the CFL. But his path took an unexpected turn off the field.
In 2014, Hall was arrested for shoplifting and drug possession, a dark chapter that cost him his job coaching at Gilbert High School and forced a painful reckoning with personal demons.
Today, Hall is not only back on the sidelines, but he’s thriving. He’s the offensive coordinator and assistant athletic director at American Leadership Academy in Queen Creek, Arizona, where he’s been helping build both a successful football program and young men of character.
“I just finished my 10th season, going into my 11th year here at ALA,” Hall said. “I’m rooted here, and love what we do here. I love the culture and how we do things, and we really do our best to do it the right way. So it’s a blessing to be here.”
For Hall, coaching felt like a natural progression after his playing days were over — a way to stay connected to the game that shaped him.
“I think when I got done playing, the thought of being away from football just didn’t feel right,” he admitted. “I always thought one day I would coach in some capacity. I started doing some quarterback training and came out to a spring ball practice at ALA just to check them out and realized how much I missed it.”
Lucky for Hall, the athletic director and head coach at the school asked him if he would be interested in helping coach the team. It wasn’t much of a thought process for Hall.
“It was a no-brainer for me. I said absolutely, and I fell in love with it right away,” Hall said. “To take all the knowledge and experience I had in football and give it to these kids, to try to be the best mentor and coach I can be, just felt right.”
Teaming up with another Cougar Legend
Hall hasn’t been the only former BYU quarterback to grace the ALA Queen Creek sidelines. From 2021-23, Hall shared the sideline with another Cougar legend, 1990 Heisman Trophy winner Ty Detmer.
Detmer was working as the district athletic director when he got a call that would bring him back into the coaching ranks.
“Rich Edwards, the head coach there left, and they asked me to go in and take that role over, " said Detmer. “Max was there and they had a great program going and he was doing great things.”
“I used to joke with Ty when he was calling plays at BYU,” said Hall. “I'd say, hey, one day, we're going to coach together. I always kind of thought it was going to be in college, and I think it was even better that we got to do it in high school.
“Ty brings a lot to the table, and I’m not just talking X’s and O’s,” Hall added. “We all know he’s got a great football mind, but it was the way he managed kids, coaches, the culture. What was really special about him was watching him make connections and relationships with all the players. It didn't matter if you were the starting quarterback or you were the second string punter, he was going to go out of his way to make sure that there was a relationship there."
Hall especially appreciated Detmer’s humility — a quality that left a lasting impression.
“Anybody who knows Ty knows he’s just salt of the earth, genuine,” said Hall. “To watch a Heisman Trophy winner picking up trash or taking the water in after practice, and he was willing to do all the little things. That meant a lot to me too. You're not above anything and we're all trying to accomplish the same goal here and be the best we can. That relationship we developed was special.”
“Max is a competitor,” said Detmer. “He gets excited and fired up about competing and he hates to lose. I think we had a really good relationship. He handled the offense and was really good with the offense and that allowed me to oversee the program, interact with parents more, the players as well, and have a hand in all of it. He could focus on the offensive side and be a mentor to the boys as well.”
Detmer left the ALA Queen Creek campus to accept the head coach position at the Gilbert campus. He knows that a rivalry could be brewing between the two schools due to their connections.
“They got after us in varsity this last year and beat us,” said Detmer. “We’ll cross paths on the field and you know we’re both competitors. He shows it a little more than I do. We both want to win and have the bragging rights so it’ll be a fun rivalry.”
Mentoring Young Men
As much as Hall loves drawing up plays and crafting game plans, his true passion lies in mentoring young athletes beyond the gridiron.
“You know you spend so much time and energy and effort as a player in football, and you learn a lot about not just playing the game, but you learn a lot about yourself and how far you can push yourself and prepare yourself and everything you do,” Hall said. “There's so many life lessons you learn that helped me later on when I needed them. You know, the things that I was struggling with in life, I was able to take lessons learned and apply them."
Hall is using not only his experiences on the gridiron to teach his players, but also the struggles he experienced off the field in order to help mold them and teach them to not make the same mistakes.
“I'm trying to not just have great football players, but great young men, and prepare them for what's next in their life,” Hall said. “Whether that's school, a job, getting married, or serving a mission or whatever that might be. Preparing them for that is just as important as winning state championships, and so we take a lot of pride in doing both.”
Hall is committed to helping his players understand that the football field is a proving ground for life.
“I think if they could take away this concept that the football field is a lot like life, and that the struggles and the things that you go through in a football game are going to show up in a different way in life,” Hall said. “If you can conquer those on the football field, you can definitely figure out a way to conquer those as you go on through the rest of your life.”
Hall has been able to coach a variety of talented players that have come through ALA Queen Creek. Tanner McLachlan, an ALA alum and current tight end with the Cincinnati Bengals, credits Hall with helping him navigate his own transition to American football.
“Max is a competitor,” McLachlan said. “Growing up in Canada, football is not as polished up there. So coming to play for Max was like an eye opening, a taste of what college was going to be like. He helped me make that transition and he began to teach me that terminology and as I continued to grow within the offense, it got better. He was an awesome teacher and awesome mentor.”
Queen Creek to BYU
Hall still keeps a close connection to BYU, and he’s proud to see his players follow a similar path.
“I hope so,” Hall said of the growing pipeline from ALA to Provo. “We’ve sent a few kids there, and BYU comes to recruit all the time. It’s awesome to see, and hopefully we can keep sending them good players.”
Quarterback Enoch Watson, a recent ALA product, is heading to BYU once he completes his mission to Chile. Hall raved about his former quarterback and is optimistic about what Cougar fans can expect.
“First of all, you're getting a great young man,” Hall said. “You're getting a great kid who not not only does everything right for himself, but is a great leader and cares about the people around him. Everywhere he goes, people seem to like him and mesh with him. You're getting a guy who I think is a great leader, and then on top of that, a phenomenal football player.”
Detmer echoed that sentiment.
“Enoch is a special player. The kids gravitate towards him. People love being around him," he said. "He’s going to be a great leader as a quarterback. He’s an athletic kid that can really throw it, real conscientious, puts the work in. I think he’s got a bright future at BYU.”
Defining Success
During Hall’s time at ALA Queen Creek, the team has won two state titles. The Patriots won the 3A title in 2016 and then again in 2018 before moving up to 4A. Despite this success on the field, Hall believes success isn’t measured solely in wins and losses.
“I think the culture of your program determines your success, not the wins and losses,” said Hall. “The wins and losses come when you have the right people in place, the right players and the right culture. I think developing that and having a firm foundation of what that is will begin the success of a program.”
Future Outlook
Over the last decade, Hall has fallen in love with high school football. From being able to teach his players valuable life lessons to playing under the lights of Friday nights, Hall has found the place where he belongs.
“I love high school football. I think it's still the purest form of the game, and Friday Night Lights, anybody will tell you, there's nothing like it,” said Hall.
Hall is unsure what his future in coaching looks like and whether or not he would want to pursue jobs in the college ranks.
“I have a son coming up that I've always wanted to coach but I think if the right opportunity was there, I'd want to take it,” Hall said. “I think my skill set is such that I could coach in college and eventually call plays in college. When that opportunity comes, I'll make that decision, but I'm definitely open to possibly coaching college one day.”
For now, Max Hall is exactly where he wants to be — rooted in a community he loves, shaping not just football players but future leaders. Whether it’s drawing up plays under the Friday night lights, mentoring athletes through life’s challenges, or watching his former players chase their dreams at the next level, Hall has found his purpose.