From the Bench: Football Road Ends for the Tank and Nightmare as Planned Path to Future is Under Way
By Jeff Toquinto on June 28, 2026 from Sports Blog
There are some great duos that see their runs end. For a pair of young men from Bridgeport, the run concluded Saturday June 20 at South Charleston High School.
There was no formal ceremony. No fanfare. No media coverage.
And while plenty of high school students here in Bridgeport and beyond get to spend years playing football together, most do not end it with a win. Most do not end it after beginning with a pair of nicknames good enough to be used again. And most do not end it knowing that
their future paths are already being laid out.
their future paths are already being laid out.
Such is the case with recently graduated seniors Harrison Hall and Noah West. Both concluded their prep football careers months after the season ended by participating in the North South contest. They just happened to be on the winning side of things in a 34-7 North win.
Even better?
Both were far from just bystanders. West ended the game as the “lineman of the game.” Hall helped himself to a touchdown reception from University High quarterback Jack Byrer that helped the North go up 34-0.
Not a bad way to end a playing career that helped forge a friendship that began early on in life in the city. In fact, they first donned the pads at age 5 around 2013. They have been almost exclusively on the same team since that time and always helping one another and their team to excellent and occasional championship seasons from late youth through high school.
It was in youth football that the pair earned nicknames for an aggressive and full throttle style of play that has been a recipe for success on 
the field and away from it. Harrison became Frank the Tank and West was known affectionately as the Mount Clare Nightmare.
the field and away from it. Harrison became Frank the Tank and West was known affectionately as the Mount Clare Nightmare.
That alone would be worthy of a blog. But it is the journey the two shared with a special end that no one else was privy to officially conclude their prep days this past week in South Charleston.
Both were primarily linemen. Both, even in their high school days, would either pave the ways for others to get yardage or score or stop the opposition from doing the same.
They were good together. During Hall’s junior year he was starting at center. During his senior year, he was a blocking back in the Indians’ single-wing attack that allows him to be a lineman out of the backfield.
West started on and off as a sophomore and played multiple positions. Inside tackle, defensive tackle, nose guard – whatever he was he remained a consummate team leader and was out front on offense as a lead blocker on many long runs in an offense that put up record numbers for the last two years.
The pair were part of the 2024 Class AAA state championship team that went 14-0. They were key in a 25-game winning streak from 2024 into 2025 that saw the team keep winning until a 33-27 quarterfinal loss at home in this past season’s Class AAA quarterfinals.
So, what has the pair been doing since?
First, a look at West. He graduated early from BHS and walked with his graduating class in May. Not common, but not unheard of.
However, his reasoning is a bit unique. In February, West began working with RDR. He’s currently a welder’s helper with the goal of earning certification in welding with completion of a welding certificate program at United Technical Center from schoolwork during his sophomore and junior years.
Understand, West is not working a few hours a week. He is going full time, always gone for the day by 5:30 a.m. and often working beyond West Virginia’s border. And to give you an idea of how dedicated he is, he had to take a week off (with no issues from his bosses) from work to be part of the North-South game.
Then there is Hall. He applied for West Pointe, following in his older brother’s footsteps of applying for a military academy.
The only negative thing in this whole story is that Hall was disqualified, but over something he had no control over. He was dealing with a medial labrum tera that delayed his application.
However, the same tenacity he showed in getting where he wanted on the football field is showing up again. Hall will be going this year to the West Point Preparatory School in New York on the same campus as the United State Military Academy.
The goal? To be in West Point in 2027.
Both, not yet even 20, have their career paths charted even though it is just the beginning after their prep education and prep football careers have officially ended. They know what they want, and they are already going after it.
I guess you should not expect anything less from the Tank and the Nightmare.
Editor's Note: Top photo shows Harrison Hall, left, and Noah West at the conclusion of the North-South football game. In the second photo, Hall, left, and West are shown during their youth football days. In the third photo, West receives his lineman of the game award at the North-South game. Bottom photo shows Harrison Hall, left, with brother Ryan who is currently at the U.S. Naval Academy.
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