Hall high on the Hawks, Tigers

Kansas City (Mo.) Rockhurst has become one of the biggest breeding grounds for college prospects in the Heartlands. Year in and year out, the school that straddles the Kansas and Missouri state lines in suburban Kansas City, Mo., has produced tons of high quality prospects. This year is no exception, especially with a big guy like two-way star Derek Hall around.

Hall, a 6-foot-5, 245-pound tight end/defensive end, already has one scholarship offer on his resume, and he's working hard at adding to that list.

"We just started our mini-camp, and it's really tough," Hall said. "We're running it just like a practice, where we're getting used to running our offensive plays, doing all of our agility drills, a lot of conditioning and getting ready for the season.

"I think it's already helped me get better."

Hall is already ranked as the No. 19 player in Missouri by Rivals.com. He could project on either side of the football. Some schools like him at tight end and others like him at defensive end, but he said he prefers to play on the offensive side of the ball.

"I like both, but I'm leaning more toward tight end," he said. "I like catching the ball and making big plays."

Hall does have a great frame, ability and could easily star on either side of the ball, no question.

"On offense, I have a good height advantage over the defenders and I can get up over them," he said. "If you throw it up to me, I'm going to go up and get it. I also weigh a lot, so I'm going to be tough to bring down.

"On defense, I like to get after the quarterback and hit people. I'm going to hit somebody no matter what I do. Even if the guy doesn't have the ball, I'm going to hit him and make him remember me."

Hall is gingerly taking his time with the recruiting process. He has an offer on the table from Kansas (Dave Doren) and said he's close to also picking up offers from Missouri (Andy Hill) and Wisconsin and Boston College.

"I really like coach Doren at KU," Hall said. "He seems like he really cares about the players, and the team is getting better and better. Coach Hill at Missouri is hilarious. I like him a lot. They told me after I was at their one-day camp that I should be getting an offer before the season starts."