HS Football: Hall steps down as head coach at North Schuylkill

North Schuylkill head coach Wally Hall talks with his players after the Spartans were defeated 36-7 by Northwestern Lehigh in the 2024 District 11 Class 3A championship game at Lehighton (Photo by Leroy Boyer).

FOUNTAIN SPRINGS — Wally Hall felt it was time.

He needed a change. He felt North Schuylkill needed a change.

And with that, the long-time North Schuylkill head football coach announced Wednesday morning that he’s stepping down from his post after 13 seasons with the Spartans.

Hall informed his team Wednesday morning after two of his senior linemen, Aiden Zilker (Temple) and Kaiden Knox (Stonehill), signed NCAA Division I letters of intent to play college football as part of the NCAA’s early signing period.

“It’s time,” Hall said Wednesday night by phone. “It hasn’t been an easy choice. The decision comes after a lot of thought. It’s based on what I believe is best for both myself and the program moving forward.

“Making that decision, I know the team is strong, they’re resilient, they’re full of potential. I certainly have no doubt that they will continue to succeed and carry on the values that we worked on and built together.”

Hall compiled a 115-38 overall record (.752 winning percentage) in 13 seasons at North Schuylkill, guiding the Spartans to the playoffs every season. He directed the Spartans to District 11 championships in 2018, 2020 and 2021, runner-up finishes four other seasons and two trips to the PIAA 3A playoffs. His 2020 squad finished a perfect 8-0.

Under his guidance, the Spartans won eight or more games 11 times in Hall’s 13 seasons, including double-digit victories five times. North Schuylkill won 11 games three times during Hall’s tenure — in 2014, 2018 and 2021.

This season, the Spartans went 8-4, 6-2 in the Schuylkill-Colonial Football Cooperative’s Red Division. North Schuylkill downed Panther Valley 53-27 in the District 11 Class 3A quarterfinals before falling to eventual district champion Northwestern Lehigh 49-21 in the semifinals.

Three of the Spartans’ losses were to Southern Lehigh and Northwestern Lehigh (twice), who are both playing this weekend in their respective PIAA Championship games.

“To the North Schuylkill School District, I’m grateful to them for giving me the opportunity the past 13 years and the privilege to be the head football coach there and the opportunity to develop young men, not only on the field but off the field,” Hall said.

“As I told the team today, I’ll continue to cheer for them, but from a different place. I told them they needed to continue to support each other and keep pushing forward.”

Hall’s coaching career has spanned 19 seasons as a head coach, with a 152-68 overall record.

A 1994 Shenandoah Valley graduate and a member of the Blue Devils’ 1992 District 11 championship team, Hall was 19-14 at his alma mater from 2000-02 with a pair of Eastern Conference playoff appearances.

After a three-year stint as an assistant coach at Marian from 2004-06, Hall was the head coach at Mahanoy Area from 2009-11. He guided the Golden Bears to a 18-16 mark that included Eastern Conference Class A crowns in 2010 and 2011.

In addition to coaching at North Schuylkill, Hall was active in the Pennsylvania Scholastic Football Coaches Association as a district director. He coached in state-wide all-star games three times — as the head coach of the East squad in the PSFCA East/West Small-School game in 2022, as an assistant coach in the East/West game in 2018 and served as an assistant coach for Team Pennsylvania in the Big 33 Game in 2024.

The 50-year-old Frackville resident thanked his family — wife Jill, son Jake, daughter Madeline — for their support throughout his coaching career. Jake was the Spartans’ starting quarterback for two-plus seasons, guiding North Schuylkill to back-to-back District 11 Class 3A titles in 2020 and 2021 and being named Schuylkill Chapter No. 25 Scholar-Athlete in 2022.

“The most important thing was my family,” said Hall, who is a Title I math teacher at North Schuylkill Elementary. “To be a head football coach and put the time in …. you have to have a good family, wife and children, with a good understanding of what you’re doing.

“Through those years, my son was always by my side and my daughter was on the sideline just as much as a water girl and team manager for football team. It was a whole family dedication to the football program.

“A lot of non-football people believe that August comes and football starts. That’s definitely a misbelief, especially how I approach it. It’s been every day. It’s every day in the weight room, four days a week during the summer, on the bus on the weekends going to different places.”

Hall coached a bevy of talented players through his 13 years at North Schuylkill, including several that went on to play Division I college football. When asked about specific memories of his career, it was his players that he’ll remember most.

“On the field, the biggest thing that stands out … it’s all about the players,” Hall said. “We had some tremendous times and there were some great wins and we did that all together as a team. There were a lot of names that were significant players through the program but at the end of the day it was all about the team.

“Boy, did we have a good time doing it.”

Hall didn’t totally close the door on coaching again and jokingly confirmed he’s not leaving North Schuylkill to be the next head coach at Penn State. He felt, after 13 seasons at North Schuylkill, it’s time for somebody else to guide the Spartans.

“We’ll see,” Hall said. “Maybe again. You never know.”