Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake's Talon Immel commits to UAlbany lacrosse, turns focus to gridiron

Talon Immel is in the midst of a heavy period of athletic activity.

The Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake junior running back took a break from the gridiron over the weekend to compete in Canada with his United States Boys’ Lacrosse 17-and-under teammates. A few days earlier, the standout lacrosse player gave the University at Albany his oral commitment to compete for the Great Danes. Saturday afternoon, Immel and his Spartans football teammates host Columbia in a key Class A football game.

Immel, who competed in the Rivalry Challenge in Ontario, Canada, Friday through Sunday after previously taking part in Brogden Cup Sept. 25-27 in Sparks, Md., enjoyed competing at the national level as one of 24 players selected to the US 17-and-under squad.

“It was two really good experiences and a cool time,” said Immel, who scored a couple of goals to lead one half of the USA squad against the other half of his team in the final.

Immel’s attention is now back on football. Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake (6-0 overall, 5-0 Class A), ranked No. 13 in the state, is gearing up for a crucial contest Saturday against Columbia (4-2, 4-2). He has rushed for 485 yards and seven touchdowns in the four games he has played.

“I am especially pumped to now be able to focus solely on football. It has been a crazy couple of weeks,” Immel said. “Recruiting-wise, it is a very stressful process when you know you have a call this day and this day, plus I have seven hours of school and three hours of football. Then, I get a call at 8:30 p.m. that I have to be mentally awake and prepared to have a real conversation. I am glad that it is over and I am glad that I found a really nice place.”

As the lacrosse recruiting process began to rise in intensity for Immel after being selected to the national team, the junior struck a chord with University at Albany associate head coach and offensive coordinator Merrick Thomson.

Immel, who helped lead BH-BL to Class C sectional boys’ lacrosse titles in 2025 and 2026, had made other Division I contacts and had visits scheduled. After touring UAlbany, he decided to commit.

“It felt like it was a place I would be most comfortable at, just the way he spoke and how passionate he was about his job,” Immel said of Thomson, a former star lacrosse player at UAlbany. “I visited campus. Everyone was so attentive and loved it. One of the main factors for me was when I watched them practice. They really looked like they were having fun. That was a big thing for me.”

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This article originally published at Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake’s Talon Immel commits to UAlbany lacrosse, turns focus to gridiron.