SDSU’s Hall eyes chance for revenge

Steve Guiremand

Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2002 | 9:49 a.m.

San Diego State quarterback Adam Hall admits he has had Saturday afternoon's game with UNLV at Qualcomm Stadium circled for a while.

"I've been waiting for this one ever since last year," Hall said. "That was such a miserable experience."

Hall made his first and only start of the 2001 season against the Rebels. He was pulled at halftime with the Aztecs trailing 31-3. He completed 7 of 15 passes for 51 yards.

"It was kind of surreal," the 6-foot-3, 215-pound junior said following practice on Tuesday afternoon. "I went out there and I didn't hear much noise. I wasn't myself the whole time."

The season left such a bad taste in Hall's mouth that he even contemplated quitting football.

"I had waited to play so long and nothing good seemed to be happening," he said. "And then Coach (Tom) Craft came in."

Craft, known for his wide-open passing attacks at Palomar Junior College in Escondido, Calif., replaced Ted Tollner as Aztecs coach following the 2001 campaign. And Hall, who had transferred to San Diego State from Texas after the Longhorns brought in a highly-touted quarterback recruit named Chris Simms, decided to return for his junior season.

A very smart move as it turns out.

Hall has flourished in Craft's system, setting a Mountain West Conference record with a 516-yard passing performance against Arizona State. He also threw for 506 yards against Idaho. And going into Saturday's game against UNLV, he ranks fourth in the nation in total offense with an average of 337.7 yards per game.

"I'd probably be working on a ranch if I had quit," Hall said. "Coach Craft has made such a huge difference here. He's really turned this into a great program. I can't see why any quarterback or wide receiver in the country wouldn't want to come here to play now."

Hall said one big change is that Craft has been much more patient with his quarterbacks.

"Before if you made a mistake, you'd get yanked," Hall said. "Now you don't have to keep looking over your shoulder. If I make a mistake, I'm going to still stay in the game and grow from it so I don't make it again. ... It wasn't a good situation for either me or Lon Sheriff -- last year."

But things have changed dramatically for Hall and the Aztecs this season. San Diego State ranks fifth nationally in passing offense with an average of 351.1 yards per game and wide receivers J.R. Tolver and Kassim Osgood rank second and third in the nation in receptions.

Meanwhile, San Diego State (2-5, 2-0) comes into the UNLV game with a two-game winning streak and sits atop the Mountain West standings with Air Force (3-0) and Colorado State (2-0).

"The guy is a phenomenal player," Craft said of Hall. "He is one of the best quarterbacks in the country. You tee his stats up with anybody -- Carson Palmer (of USC) and Chris Simms -- and he has them all beat. And he's in a new system as a new starter. You better believe he's having a heck of a year."

Hall is enjoying life in San Diego. One of his best friends is Charger quarterback Drew Brees, who preceded him as quarterback at Austin's Westlake High School.

"I was a sophomore when he was a senior," Hall said. "We grew up in the same neighborhood. It's kind of ironic that we've both wound up here in San Diego. With the season going on now, we don't see each other that much. When we do get together, we talk but it's not all about football. We might go to the movies with his girlfriend or just hang out."

Hall's main focus now is on UNLV and atoning for his disappointing 2001 start against the Rebels.

"We want to keep this thing rolling," he said. "The stats aren't as important as the victories."