Cornerback Andre Hal was a two-time second-team All-Southeastern Conference honoree for Vanderbilt football. Follow our countdown to No. 1 here.
Honors and awards: 2012 second-team All-Southeastern Conference (AP)
2012 SEC Defensive Player of the Week (Tennessee game)
2013 second-team All-SEC (AP, coaches, Athlon, Phil Steele)
2013 Reese's Senior Bowl participant
In the VU record book: Career kickoff-return average: fourth (23.1)
Before VU: Starred at Port Allen (La.) High, where he was named defensive MVP as a senior. Earned first-team 3A all-state as a senior, amassing 53 tackles, four interceptions and five kickoff returns for touchdowns as well as three receiving TDs. Averaged almost 40 yards on punt returns. Had five interceptions as a junior. Also starred in basketball and track and field, and was a member of the 3A state champion 4x200 meter relay team that set a state record.
.Freshman (2010): Played all 12 games as a true freshman for a 2-10 (1-7 Southeastern Conference) squad. Started the Florida and Wake Forest games, and had seven tackles vs. the Gators while returning two kicks for 58 yards. Returned 11 kickoffs for 260 yards (23.6)
Sophomore (2011): Played all 13 games, but didn't start any, for a 6-7 (2-6) team that lost to Cincinnati in the Liberty Bowl. Returned 31 kickoffs for 738 yards, including a 96-yard touchdown against Georgia. Had 157 return yards vs. the Bulldogs, and 129 against Arkansas. Had his first career interception vs. South Carolina. Had four tackles against Alabama.
Junior (2012): Started all 13 games for a 9-4 (5-3) team that beat North Carolina St. to win the Music City Bowl. Returned 12 kicks for 279 yards (22.9), with a long of 52. Had two interceptions that he returned for 68 yards in the 41-18 win against Tennessee, VU's first home win over the Vols in 30 years. Led the team in pass break-ups.
Senior (2013): Played all 13 games, starting 13, for a 9-4 (4-4) team that beat Houston in the Birmingham Bowl, in which he had nine tackles, a pick and two pass break-ups. Returned four kicks for 69 yards, and a fumble for 10. Led the SEC in pass break-ups. Had seven solo tackles and two assists against Ole Miss.
Post-VU: Houston took Hal in Round 7 (No. 214 overall) in the 2014 NFL Draft. He had a good NFL career with the Texans--for whom he mostly played safety, though he was the team's third corner as a rookie--starting for the better part of three years. Hal retired from football in April 2019. He'd been diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma the prior year.
Final thoughts, and why I ranked him where I did: Maybe it's just me, but if I'd done this without the benefit of a deep dive into stats and record books, Hal probably would have never hit my radar as a top-50 player during the time of our coverage of the program, which is from 2003 to now.
And Hal's career is why you do research and not just trust your gut.
One thing I factor heavily in these rankings is the difficulty of the job. It's easy to hide poor or mediocre performance at some positions, but you can't do that at corner. And while Hal wasn't a big factor his first two years--and remember, he didn't get the benefit of a redshirt season--he came up huge in his junior and senior seasons, amassing high pass break-up totals and even leading the SEC in that category as a senior. In a league that consistently puts out more good corners than perhaps any--Hal was a cornerback contemporary of some great ones, like LSU's Tyrann Mathieu, Alabama's Dee Milliner and Florida's Vernon Hargreaves III--he earned respect by making second-team All-SEC twice.
There was also the winning; Hal starred on what were easily VU's best two football teams of the last 35 years.
And while Hal may not have been regarded as an elite talent--there were 213 guys picked ahead of him in the draft--he settled that issue decisively with 12 NFL interceptions and the 31 pass break-ups. If not for cancer, he might still be starting for the Texans today.
Hal 's name may not jump off the page like some behind him in our top 100, many of whom had more fanfare in their VU careers. But I think it's hard to make a case that Hal belongs outside the top 50.
