Seizing opportunities is nothing new for William Mackall (’90). From developing into a UT Martin Hall of Fame football player, to becoming a top undercover officer, to achieving the rank of lieutenant in the Metro Nashville Police Department, Mackall meets challenges head on. So, when the opportunity came to save a man’s life, Mackall was ready to answer the call. He did just that in late 2005 when he saved a man from choking to death, an unselfish act that stands head and shoulders above his many accomplishments.
Mackall, 40, was raised in Panama City, Fla., and attended Rutherford High School. A multisport athlete, he participated on the school’s football, basketball and weightlifting teams, eventually catching the attention of college football coaches. During recruiting contacts, he remembers his mother, Lucille, sitting to the side and nodding her head in approval each time an opportunity was offered. Mackall was never sure if she understood everything discussed, but one thing was certain – she didn’t want him to pass up opportunities.
Mackall was recruited to UT Martin by Larry Shanks (’68, ‘73), former UT Martin football player, assistant coach, and, like Mackall, a UT Martin Athletics Hall of Fame member. Shanks described Mackall as a person “God-gifted with talent” who “had his priorities right.”
“He was just a super person,” Shanks said of Mackall. “He came from a very disciplined home.” Recalling his first recruiting visit to Martin, Mackall said, “Yeah, it was an eye-opener to go, and of course in Florida, it’ll snow every now and then, but I remember going up to UT Martin for my visit, and there was snow everywhere. I’d never seen anything like it in my life.”
He chose to attend UT Martin, but his football career at Martin almost ended before it began. He arrived on campus weighing 154 pounds, and before the season started, the coaches decided to red-shirt him so that he would have a year to grow. He was playing running back at the time, and on the verge of quitting the team, he remembers calling his mother and telling her, “I’m better than those other guys. …They’re not going to give me a chance because of my size.” However, some key injuries soon provided an opportunity for him to earn a uniform, and he went from there to become a record-breaking player. Beyond the practices, the games and his role in a Gulf South Conference Tri-Championship in 1988, he remembers a group of hard-working players and coaches who cared about each other beyond the football field. “I know if anytime I had any personal problem, the coaches were there for me,” he said.
A turning point in his career happened his senior year when he began returning punts, which he did at the urging of UT Martin Assistant Coach Jerry Reese (‘87, ’88), now senior vice president and general manager of the New York Giants. He said that returning punts was something he’d never do, but Reese saw this as an opportunity for Mackall to catch the National Football League’s attention. “And so ever since that day we had that conversation in practice, he put me back there (to receive punts), and I tried it out and I liked it,” he remembered.
The opportunity to return punts paid off when Mackall was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the ninth round following his senior year. Suddenly, he was surrounded by players whom he idolized, including running back and Pro Football Hall of Fame member, Eric Dickerson. “All my life, I said that I was going to make it to the NFL and play, and once I got there, it was eye opening,” he said. “It was kind of overwhelming to be around all these guys that I’ve watched on TV day in and day out.” Disappointingly, Mackall was released from the Colts at the final cut, but went on play one year with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League. Nagging hamstring injuries forced his release from the team the following year, and needing a job, Mackall decided to use his criminal justice degree by pursuing his other passion: law enforcement.
“Well, I’ve always been interested in law enforcement,” he said. “I’ve always wanted to be an undercover police officer and work in the narcotics division. That’s something I was always intrigued with.” Dr. Richard Chesteen, professor of political science, is not surprised at Mackall’s career choice. “William was a determined person who wanted to make his mark,” Chesteen recalled about his former student, who also earned a minor in political science. “I am not surprised that he is in law enforcement and has been very successful in it. Like many of our scholarship athletes, he used sports for his benefit and as a doorway to a productive career.”
Mackall’s first opportunity in law enforcement came with the Martin Police Department, where he worked for two years until he landed a position in 1992 with the Metro Nashville Police Department, where he’s been ever since. Mackall was a patrol officer his first two years before becoming a narcotics investigator. “So for seven years, I was a narcotics investigator where I went out in the streets of Nashville and purchased narcotics from street-level drug dealers,” he said.
He eventually was promoted to sergeant over that unit in 2001, a position he held for three years. The following two years he became the supervisor over the long-term narcotics group, which brought him in contact with major drug trafficking. In 2005, the Tennessee Narcotics Officers Association presented his unit with the Narcotics Unit of the Year Award that recognized several accomplishments, including the seizure of 2,900 pounds of marijuana.
Although his undercover police work achieved positive results, Mackall and his family pay an ongoing personal price for his success: the possibility of retribution from those whom he arrested never goes away. When eating in a restaurant, he makes sure that he never sits with his back to the door. Similar precautions follow him when driving as he’s always prepared to take evasive action. He has a son who lives with him, and he’s explained to him what to do in a threatening situation. “We average arresting a thousand people a year, buying narcotics from them and doing search warrants,” he said. “And those guys normally get a lot of time in jail for stuff like that.”
A promotion to lieutenant in 2006 raised his supervisory responsibility to new levels. Where he formerly supervised nine officers as a sergeant, he now supervises six sergeants and 37 officers in the department’s North Precinct, Nashville’s largest in terms of area. “We’re trying to make the neighborhoods better,” he said of his new role. “We’re trying to work hand-in-hand with the people in the community.” His promotion, and the promotion of another African-American officer, made them the first African-American officers promoted to lieutenant since 1998. “All my life I’ve been working hard to be on top,” he said, adding, “God, He’s been blessing me, so I can’t complain about anything.”
While in the midst of a busy career, Mackall encountered the life-saving opportunity that he will never forget. Late in 2005 while still working undercover, he was traveling one day in an unmarked police car with his windows down when he suddenly heard a young woman yelling. The woman, someone he recognized through her previous position with metro government, was parked off the street in a van, and she was beating an elderly man on the back with her hand.
Mackall pulled out of a parking lot onto the street, and while watching through his rearview mirror, he saw the man collapse. Realizing the man was in trouble, he stopped his car, ran to the man, saw that the man was choking and started applying the Heimlich maneuver. The man then turned blue, and the situation worsened as he went limp. Although Mackall maintains a high level of physical fitness, including expertise in the martial arts, the strain made it harder to perform the life-saving procedure.
“Another young lady stopped after I did, and I asked them (the two women) to help me hold him up while I … applied the Heimlich maneuver,” he said. “And, slowly the food just started coming back out of his mouth.” The man soon regained consciousness and started breathing before medical help arrived. Mackall learned that the woman with him was the man’s caretaker and had stopped at a restaurant to get the man a sandwich. The man became choked on the sandwich but was fortunate – had Mackall not been traveling with his windows down and heard the woman calling out, he would not have responded. Mackall was so touched by the incident that he compares saving the man’s life to the feeling he had at the births of his two children. Beyond his personal satisfaction, his heroics were honored when he received the police department’s Lifesaving Award in 2006.
The 15-year police department veteran doesn’t have time to rest on his laurels. Outside of his police work, Mackall sees more opportunities for service as he prepares to become an active mentor for troubled youth. “They still have a fighting chance if they turn around now,” he says of these young people. His message to them is, “Don’t let what you’ve done in the past hold you back.”
Mackall’s family knows little about the honors he has accumulated. “A lot of the stuff that I’ve accomplished probably would be a surprise to them. …” he said as he laughed. And, if he told them, he would not take credit for hisachievements. He added, “I thank God for giving me the strength and the courage to do the things I do. Without Him, none of the things I accomplished in my life would have been possible. He deserves the credit, not me.”
If his mother does learn of his accomplishments, she will probably still nod her head, just as she did when William was being recruited to play football. This time around, these would be nods of approval. Her son has honored her by seizing those opportunities.
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