PROVO — In the grand scheme of life, or even sports, the final score of a 7-on-7 game of touch football at LaVell Edwards Stadium on the final day of March doesn't mean much.

Don't tell that to Bryan Kehl, though.

The former BYU linebacker caught a 55-yard Hail Mary pass from Max Hall — yes, that Max Hall — on the final play of the game, lifting the Navy alumni team to a 31-27 win over the Royal alumni Thursday night to cap off spring football practices.

Of course, it had to be Hall, the 6-foot-1 Arizonan who threw for 11,365 yards and 94 touchdowns in three years before playing in the NFL and CFL. But the receiver of the said pass?

That one was a bit more unusual.

"All game I was telling him, throw me the deep ball; I need the deep ball," said Kehl, who spent time in the NFL with the New York Giants, among others. "We were beating them pretty good, but they came back and took the lead, which was terrible.

"As soon as they scored, I ran over to Max and said, 'We've got the deep ball; I can beat them.' They did a chunk play to Cody (Hoffman) first, and then called timeout. He threw it up … I ran, got down to the end zone as fast as I could, and Max still has a cannon."

Shades of the Utah game from 2007, with Kehl playing the role of Austin Collie.

"And I've still got two broken fingers," he said. "It was fun. It was awesome. Great turnout; the fans were amazing being here, and the game was fun. Guys still got it; Aleva Hifo still has wheels.

"It was great to be back here."

Hall threw for 313 yards with a pair of touchdown passes to Mitch Matthews, Devon Blackmon — yes, the fan-favorite receiver with 799 yards in his two seasons at BYU finally caught that long-sought touchdown pass in LaVell Edwards Stadium — and Kehl. He also threw an interception to Jernaro Gilford and Colby Pearson, while Navy's Joe Sampson had two picks of his own.

But no throw was as big as the final pass, when he sent everyone deep in the backyard football-style game, just like Kehl said. In the 7-on-7 game with no pass rush and no designed quarterback runs, the current offensive coordinator at American Leadership Academy in Queen Creek, Arizona, hurled the 60-yard strike near the back of the end zone — and the most unpredictable pass-catcher came down with it.

"Man, that was awesome. What a fun night to have everybody out here and play like that," Hall said. "I don't think anybody got hurt, so that's a huge plus.

"And then that last play, Bryan said, 'Max, just throw it up. I'll catch it.' And he did; it was everything I had to get it there — I'll hurt for a few days. But what a moment."

Just like they drew it up.

Several BYU assistant coaches played, too, including defensive ends coach Preston Hadley, cornerbacks coach Gilford (who showed off after his pick), and assistant head coach and safeties coach Ed Lamb, who pointed to wide receivers Puka Nacua and Keanu Hill on the sideline after a PBU, a touchdown and an interception as if to say, "I've still got it."

With a made-for-TV game streamed on the BYUtv App giving fans access from huddle-to-huddle and in-game interviews, the game was better than any spring game or half-contact open practice could have been. Good enough, at least, that BYU coach Kalani Sitake said they'll plan on continuing the tradition as long as alumni relations director Jack Damuni and player experience manager Billy Nixon can find bodies to play.

Maybe a certain former BYU fullback will play more than one snap next year, too.

"Coach Lamb said he was going to play one play on each side of the ball, and I don't think he ever came out," Sitake said. "The stamina in him to stay in there and play; he caught a touchdown, got a PBU. Just the competitiveness.

"I wanted to do all that, too … but you haven't seen me run full speed since the Baylor game. There's a reason for that. I'll try to be in shape for next year's game."

Next year, or any subsequent year, the coach has at least one alum who will rally the troops to come back to the stadium for one magical night.

"Any time they do this, I want in," Kehl said. "I love this, I love playing, I love competing. I have dreams almost weekly that I'm still playing, and I wake up and I'm sad because I miss it. It's in my blood, it's in my DNA.

"I'm Uncle Rico now — still old — and it's fun to just come out here, run around, and pretend to be young again."

Hifo caught five passes for 104 yards and a touchdown for the Royal team, which was led by Kevin Feterik's 224 yards and two touchdowns (with two interceptions) and Charlie Peterson's 189 yards and two scores. That included a 7-yard strike from Feterik that took a late lead on what they thought was the final play of the game.

But Hall looked up and noticed that eight seconds remained on the clock.

Plenty of time, right?

"Of course, it was Hall," Hifo said. "I was like, dang; how did that happen? It's the magic of this place."

Even on the losing side, the night was a win for each of the 40-plus alumni in the building.

"Some of these guys haven't seen each other for 10 years. Being able to reconnect and come together was huge," Hifo said. "Being in LaVell Edwards Stadium, this place is magical."

And for some, the chance to meet a living legend of past eras of BYU football was all the more worth it.

"The first person I met was Curtis Brown. I sat next to him at lunch, and he said, 'Hi, my name is Curtis,'" recalled Hifo, who spent time in the NFL with the Kansas City Chiefs. "Of course, I knew who he was. We talked about all these legends: Kevin Feterik, Charlie Peterson.

"Those guys were in the glory days, and it's good to see BYU winning again, too."

That's a wrap

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