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Roy Hall simply could not walk away from the empire he built.

In early April, Hall announced his resignation as Davison’s wrestling coach after a 309-48-1 record in 10 seasons, including six state championships.

When the job and the accompanying teaching position did not draw the interest the school expected, Hall decided to return. The school made it official Monday.

"I’m not sure why there was not a lot of interest from outsiders," Hall said. "People might have shied away from the demands and expectations of the program. I feel it is the best wrestling job in the state. The economy probably was a factor too. It’s simply not as easy for people to move these days."

Assistant Bill Stouffer has overseen offseason conditioning, but Hall was back at work Tuesday evening, running an open practice session. Rest assured, he said, the enthusiasm has not waned.

"I expect to continue to have the same level of success and hopefully take us to an even higher level," Hall said. "There is always room for improvement. I am excited to get back at it and the best move for the program was for me to stay on board and keep it moving forward."

Hall cited a desire to spend more time with his three children who are between the ages of 6-10 when he resigned, but said his family was understanding of his decision.

"My wife and family are my biggest supporters, and they are actually excited I’m going to continue," Hall said. "My kids were happy about it and that made me feel good about my decision. They are comfortable around the program and the wrestlers. The expectations will continue to be high and we’ll have the same tough schedule to prepare for the postseason."

Davison returns seven of 14 starters, including five state qualifiers, from last season’s team which went 34-2, falling to unbeaten Holt in the Division 1 semifinals. The Cardinals were second in michigangrappler.com’s final overall team rankings. Brandon Shuart, a 2006 state qualifier, will also be back.

"I was going into my senior year and was pretty upset about coach Hall not being there for it, so this is really awesome news," state qualifier Talon Hodgeson said. "I was not sure how you could even replace him and was afraid Davison wrestling might go down hill. I think we can win the state title next year. Everybody is pretty excited for next season."

Hall, a two-time state champion and four-time state medalist at Davison before graduating in 1988, took over the program in the fall of 1997. In addition to the state titles, the Cardinals won 10 Big Nine, 10 district and eight regional championships during Hall’s tenure.

Davison finished 38-2 in 2000, setting a school victories record and capturing its first state championship under the team format which began in 1988. The Cardinals finished second in 2001 before reeling off five straight titles from 2002-06. No other team has won that many consecutive championships completely under the team format. The only other team to capture five straight titles was New Lothrop (1985-89).

Davison wrestlers also earned 68 top-eight (All -State) individual state tournament finishes under Hall, including 17 state championships. There are currently seven Davison graduates wrestling in college, including three who earned NCAA All-American honors this season. Two others — Justin McDermitt (Central Michigan) and Bryan Rickard (Appalachian State) — recently signed.

The only area coach who led a single program to more state championships was Martin Crane, who guided Beecher to 10 boys track titles. Earl Roberts Jr. led Michigan School for the Deaf to six track championships.

Hall, a USA Wrestling Dream Team All-American his senior of high school, was a four-time NCAA qualifier at Michigan State University and bronze medalist at the 1990 Olympic Festival. He was named National High School Coaches Association Wrestling Coach of the Year in 2005.

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