If there's one position on the defense where Kirby Smart feels the most secure, it's free safety, where junior Malaki Starks is entering his third year as a starter in the Bulldog secondary.
In two short years, Starks has developed into one of the premier safeties in all of college football. He'll be one of the unquestioned leaders for the entire Bulldog football team this fall.
More on Starks:
Find someone who speaks about you the way Georgia defensive coordinator Glenn Schumann talks about Starks.
We all should be so lucky.
“He’s a really good person; he prepares the right way. When we talk about maturity level, he’s got a maturity level unto himself as a defensive player and a person from the moment he got here,” Schumann said at the Orange Bowl. “He’s incredibly humble. He’s grateful for his opportunity, and constantly approaches each day with the right level of enthusiasm. The reason he’s continually improved is because he doesn’t have an ego. He’s going to do what’s best for the team and his teammates.”
When the Bulldogs begin spring practice in just a few weeks, Starks will be ready to give it his all.
After two seasons of sitting under the learning tree of players like Tykee Smith and Javon Bullard, Starks is ready to help out his younger teammates at the position, including freshmen like KJ Bolden.
“I’ve learned the game of football," Starks said before the Orange Bowl. "Being able to learn from Tykee (Smith), from (Javon) Bullard, and Coach (Glenn) Schumann, guys like that, they’ve helped me learn the game of football and have that confidence.”
Head coach Kirby Smart certainly has plenty of confidence in him.
"He's probably the one guy that could go out there and play corner if he had to," Smart said. "He's got a coverage skill set and speed skill set that most safeties don't have."
Starks will have plenty of help.
Georgia's safeties are interchangeable, but veterans Dan Jackson and Jacory Thomas are expected to also play the side of the field manned by Starks, who earned consensus All-American honors in just his second year.
Expect more of the same in Year 3.
"I'm very blessed to be in a position to have those opportunities and be mentioned with those guys. I try not to pay too much attention to it,," Starks said. "As far as my game, I want to take it to the next level. Anything and everything, whether that be vision, tackling, playing the ball, whatever the case may be, I want to take it to the next level.”
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