Malaki Starks has a list
Every day, Malaki Starks writes down three things.
He and fellow defensive back Javon Bullard share the ritual. Each jots down a trio of things they want to improve every day before heading out to practice.
Starks and Bullard hold each other accountable to their goals. The tradition also allows Starks to see just how far he's come since he arrived on Georgia's campus last January.
"Just seeing and going back to film to see something I did and saying, 'I wouldn't have got that last year or a few months ago.' I can really say I'm trying to trust the process and dive into it," Starks said.
Starks played in every game as a true freshman in 2022. He started every contest except for the season opener against Oregon.
Starks attributed his early playing time to his willingness to accept criticism and "soak up what I needed to soak up." He also learned from veterans such as Bullard and Christopher Smith.
"Chris really helped me out when I got here," Starks said. "Coming in as a freshman, especially being on this defense, I was a little nervous to speak up. I felt like I didn't really have a place, and he just kind of helped me find where I was supposed to be. Being a DB, you're like the quarterback of the defense on the backend, so he just really helped me find my voice and get comfortable and confident in who I was as a player.”
Every freshman slams into the proverbial wall at some point. Starks doesn't recall exactly when it happened for him, but he said he just tried to focus on getting back to his fundamentals as the season wore on.
Through this spring and summer, Starks has focused on refining the mental aspects of his game.
"I would say recognizing formations and just really diving in and learning football," Starks said. "Being here with Coach Schumann [Glenn Schumann, defensive coordinator], Coach Muschamp [Will Muschamp, co-defensive coordinator] and Coach Smart [Kirby Smart, head coach], you have no choice but to learn football. So, I would say just understanding the game of football better. I focused on every aspect I could work on--footwork, recognizing defenses and offenses, trying to communicate better. Really just everything, because you can always improve on anything and everything, so I have been trying to take every aspect of my game and bump it up."
Starks will be manning one of the safety spots when Georgia opens its season on Sept. 2. Until then, he will continue to learn as much as he can and try to meet his trio of goals every day.
"I've been meeting with Schumann and Muschamp, legends really, just trying to dive in and soak up their knowledge. because they have so much," Starks said. "It's crazy how much you can learn if you just try to soak it in."