Hall is a good coverage corner who gives the secondary yet another option for the two-deep.
The transfer portal in college football has been referred to as a “great equalizer,” mostly because of the fact that it gives more teams the chance to field elite talent that they couldn’t get in the high school recruiting game. But what do you call it when a good team uses the portal to strengthen an already strong position group?
The latter is the position Missouri finds itself in after the recent addition of Stephen Hall, a rising junior cornerback from Washington State. Heading into the offseason, Mizzou is looking at returning its top three corners from the 2024 season in Dreyden Norwood, Toriano Pride, Jr. and Nicholas Deloach, Jr. The former two each have one season of eligibility remaining, while the latter still has three. But instead of waiting for a young player to present themselves, Corey Batoon went to the portal and brought along a fourth corner who should immediately insert himself into the competition for starting snaps in 2025.
Hall spent two seasons in Pullman after starting his career at Northwest Mississippi Community College. He spent three seasons there, so this will be his final season in college football, meaning the staff has one more year to get its ducks in a row in the corner room.
Where He Fits: Hall is a cornerback, so the staff probably isn’t looking to move him to interior defensive line in 2025. No, he’ll be stationed on the outside of the secondary, where he’ll compete with Pride, Norwood and Deloach for regular snaps. It should be noted that Hall had a coverage grade of 72.1 according to Pro Football Focus last season. That would’ve ranked first amongst Mizzou’s cornerbacks, though it’s easy to understand how going up against SEC passing offenses and Pac-2 and non-Power Four offenses are two different worlds. But when you look at the makeup of his report card, Hall seems like a coverage guy through-and-through.
When He’ll Play: Obviously he’s playing right away. There’s no doubt about that. I should point out, however, that Mizzou is returning its two starting corners, meaning Hall isn’t guaranteed starter’s snaps right away. But it’s nice to have a good coverage man in the fold to challenge the three aforementioned veterans and create some healthy competition in the corner room.
What It Means: Mizzou was already in a strong position as it related to its cornerback depth in 2025. The addition of Hall fortifies that unit — assuming there aren’t any impending departures — and further solidifies a secondary that will be one of the conference’s most experienced headed into next season.