What Drives Five-Star Football Recruit Kellan Hall? Family, Faith and Legacy

Family is what keeps five-star recruit football player Kellan Hall motivated.

Christian Academy-Louisville's 6-foot-5 junior is one of the nation's premier Class of 2028 football prospects, but when Hall talks about what drives him, recruiting rankings and college offers aren't the first things he mentions. He starts with his parents and grandmother.

“My family for sure,” Hall said. “Start off with my dad and my mom. They didn't come from two-parent households like me. My dad was raised by a teen mother. And my mom, it was just her and her mother for her whole life.”

Their experiences — and the opportunities they have provided him — have helped shape how Hall approaches football, faith, leadership and the legacy he hopes to create.

Life in the Trenches Requires More Than Talent

To play on the defensive line takes external and internal motivation. The effort is constant, the recovery short. A single play can require grappling with an offensive lineman, changing direction and sprinting after a ball carrier.

Kellan concedes that it is exhausting and unlike other positions on the field.

“It is different. It's just constant hitting and stuff like that…they break a big play, you got to go after the ball, you’re 300 pounds. And then you got to go back and do it again. It's tiring. I got to chase after a quarterback who's running 4.5. And these running backs, who are 200 pounds, can run downhill, but also juke.”

Kellan explained that you have to maintain weight but simultaneously be agile while delivering on each play. If the defensive line gets pushed backward.

“Every play you got to deliver the blow because if you don't deliver the blow and you get knocked back, it just messes up the whole defense,” he said.

Hall's Work Ethic Shows in His Production

Strength is an obvious component of playing on the interior line, but so is conditioning. You cannot have one without the other when lining up for a plethora of snaps through four quarters.

The day I interviewed Kellan at CAL, he was preparing to perform a conditioning test which challenges a player's desire.

“It's 25 yards down and back six times,” he said. “You get a minute in between. You have to do that six times,” he explained. “So it's like 36 reps in total. You can't play until you pass it. We've only had one guy not pass it in this whole time here, and he unfortunately stopped playing.”

As a sophomore, Kellan registered eight sacks and nearly 20 tackles for loss.

The 6-foot-5 d-lineman/basketball player is ranked nationally by Rivals as the No. 2 defensive line prospect in the Class of 2028.

Which obviously means he is being heavily recruited. Oklahoma and Ohio State are among those vying for his services.

Effort Separates Hall From Other Elite Prospects

So, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that effort is a hallmark of Kellan’s commitment to the team and game.

“My greatest strength, I'd probably say, is my effort,” he said. “That's the one thing that you don't really see with a lot of high-ranked players. They use a lot of their skill, their size and their talent. But I feel like effort is one of the real things that translates to college. Because if you don't have effort now, you're not going to get it later, and it's hard to get. So one thing that I've tried to tell myself is always run after the ball. Always go help push the running back, go push the pile. Those extra tough yards that could stop a fourth and one.”

Faith Shapes Hall's Approach to Leadership

And it’s effort fortified by faith. Faith is the platform that supports CAL football.

“It's huge. We always pray before games. We have devotions after our games on Saturdays. Our school's motto is, ‘What would Jesus do?’”

Faith also informs Kellan’s leadership, an element of the game that he admits could improve. However, it’s not related to a lack of desire to lead, but in the way he leads.

“Just being a vocal leader…I used to lead by example. Now I'm going to be a vocal leader as well. You know, set the tone. Just be a voice that the young guys can look up to. They see the rankings and the ratings. I just want everyone to know that I'm not above you. I'm the same as you. I just want to lead the team to where I feel like we can go.”

“You're representing something bigger than yourself, representing God. You're representing Christian Academy. That's the first thing people see is Christian. So that's why you got to keep representing it. It's a way of life being a Christian…we're playing for an end goal. The ball is going to stop rolling. And at the end of the day we all want to make it to one place. And that’s heaven.”

The Hall Family Is Building a Legacy

A mature attitude for a teenager entering the 11th grade. Yet, you have to believe that Kellan’s humility and focus are also rooted in the legacy and guidance of his parents and grandmother.

His father had to assist his young mother with raising his siblings, while holding down a paper route and driving at 14 years old. He said his mother was fatherless and basically raised by uncles.

“So they learned how to grow up real quick and just seeing them, what they've gone through,” Kellan said.

The strong bond and connectivity of the parent-child relationship are readily apparent. Kellan’s father, Draper Hall, speaks with proud affection about his son’s effort and character.

“We've been here for the last 10 years,” said Draper, who is also a coach on the CAL staff. “And for him to sit here on this field knowing that he started out in first grade in the lower area of the school, and kind of how things have progressed. I think it's been a true testament to his hard work.”

And though Kellan has received a decent amount of publicity relating to his football prowess, it’s more about legacy, inspiration and modeling than gridiron accolades and social media recognition.

“One thing we've maintained our status on, as a family, is really about legacy,” Draper said. “His journey will be one that will be inspiring to kids in this area. When you think about great football players, most folks think about kids from Florida, Georgia, Texas. Those bigger, larger states. But he has an opportunity to truly make a statement and a testament for many, many years to come.”

“I want people to know that being able to give back to the community and being able to kind of use this football as a platform for informing and educating our youth is one thing that we've taken pride in as a family.”

Playing for the Name on His Back

Hall's motivation becomes most personal when he talks about his grandmother, whose illness several years ago left a lasting impression on him.

“She always believed in me,” Hall said. “At some point, the ball is going to stop. But when I am here and when I can keep going, I'm going to keep going for her and keep going for my whole family because they've done so much for me.”

Then Hall distilled much of what drives him into a few words.

“I got it from my family. Keep going. Last name on my back.”

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