For Roy Hall, Jeannette has always been much more than a place to play or coach football.

It’s home.

After spending 37 years on the Jayhawks’ coaching staff, including 13 seasons as head coach, Hall is being honored for a lifetime of contributions to Jeannette athletics with induction into the Jeannette Athletic Hall of Fame next month.

“I’m a Jeannette-er, thick and thin and all the way through,” Hall told Anthony DeNunzio during a halftime interview in the Jayhawks’ win over Riverview Friday. “I love the sport, and I love backing Jeannette, whether it’s football, basketball, baseball, softball. I’ll always be there.”

Hall finished his head coaching career with 116 victories two WPIAL titles and a PIAA championship, but his connection to Jeannette athletics began long before he stood on the sideline at McKee Stadium. Football was his first love, but Hall was a multi-sport athlete for the Jayhawks, competing in wrestling and track as well. He was a WPIAL wrestling champion during the 1981-82 school year and came from a family with a rich wrestling tradition.

“I think we have in our family about seven WPIAL champions in wrestling, and we have a couple state titles,” Hall said. “My brother Greg was Jeannette’s first state champ. I’m so proud to be a member of the Jayhawk family and my family, the Hall family.”

Hall was also a member of Jeannette’s 1981 WPIAL championship team, which will join him in the Athletic Hall of Fame.

His path from player to head coach was part of a remarkable coaching lineage at Jeannette. Hall played for legendary coach Joe Mucci before eventually joining a coaching tree that repeatedly saw assistants become the Jayhawks’ next head coach.

“I don’t think there’s another team or community in the whole state that had it like we did,” Hall said. “Coach Mucci was the head coach, Coach Trag [Art Tragesser] was his assistant, then he became head coach. Murph [Bob Murphy] was his assistant, then he became head coach. Ray Reitz was Murph’s assistant, he became head coach, and then I was fortunate enough to become a head coach there.”

Hall said those coaches remained important resources throughout his career.

“I had a lot of mentors in front of me,” he said. “We started together junior high, and we just came up through the ranks.”

That career produced plenty of unforgettable nights at McKee Stadium. One that remains particularly vivid for Hall was Jeannette’s dramatic WPIAL playoff victory over Rochester in 2017 when Isaiah Winters caught a 29-yard touchdown pass from Seth Howard on fourth down to beat the Rams late.

Hall also remembers what happened after Jeannette defeated Farrell in the PIAA Class 1A Semifinal later that season.

“They thought they were going to win,” Hall recalled. “They had all these Hershey chocolate bars, and they brought them over and gave them to us. They said, ‘You guys deserve it.’ That was very memorable.”

The following week, Jeannette went on to defeat Homer-Center to claim the state title.

“I’ll never forget the parade coming into town,” Hall said. “It gives me chills right now just talking about it, thinking about it. Those are memories you’ll never forget.”

There were milestone victories, too.

Hall was on the sideline as Jeannette continued adding to one of Pennsylvania high school football’s richest traditions, including the program’s 700th victory in 2015. A celebration followed at McKee Stadium, complete with fireworks.

“One thing about Jeannette, they know how to celebrate,” Hall said. “It was just nice to be a part of that. I even think Wilkinsburg felt the family togetherness, too.”

Hall also helped guide the program through changes, including the transition from McKee Stadium’s natural grass surface to turf. He once doubted he would ever see artificial turf installed at the stadium during his lifetime, much less during his coaching career. Instead, Hall coached Jeannette in both the final game on grass and the first game on the new turf.

Through all the victories and changes, however, Hall continually credits the people around him.

“I really appreciate all this stuff, but I couldn’t have did it, first of all, without my wife, Patti Hall, and I had some fantastic assistant coaches,” Hall said. “And the community being behind us — I just can’t believe it went that fast. I loved every minute of it.”

Retirement from coaching hasn’t separated Hall from Jeannette athletics. He remains a familiar face at sporting events, continuing to support the Jayhawks and current football coach Thomas Paulone and his staff. Paulone was a senior when Hall took over the program in 2013 and has embraced the opportunity to follow his former coach in leading the Jayhawks.

“Taking over for him… it’s been a dream come true,” Paulone said. “Every Jeannette kid dreams of being the head coach. I’m really privileged to take it over from him. Coach Hall is a first-ballot Hall of Famer and is a special guy in my football life.”

Even away from the athletic fields, Hall is frequently reminded of what his career has meant to the community.

“I try to stay modest, but it makes you feel really good,” Hall said. “I can go to Home Depot, my second home there, and I don’t know them, and they’ll recognize me and say, ‘Hey coach, congratulations.’ That makes you feel really good being a part of it.”

The Jeannette Athletics Hall of Fame ceremony is set for 7 p.m. Oct. 16 at the Jeannette American Legion.