ATHENS — Malaki Starks is a proud Jefferson, Ga., native.
And yet he knows in some ways it will be a town divided on Saturday, as he will be facing off against another Jefferson High School alum in Sammy Brown.
Like Starks, Brown was a 5-star prospect. And the two former teammates have a great respect for one another.
“They want both of us to do very well. Yeah, I talked to him about two weeks ago,” Starks said. “I’ve got a close relationship with his dad. Great family, great kid. I’m excited to see what he’s going to do and what he’s going to put on. I’m very excited for him.”
Starks knows what it’s like to make your debut in Mercedes-Benz Stadium, as Brown will do so on Saturday. Starks was a freshman back in 2022 when Georgia opened against Oregon.
The Georgia safety had a rather memorable afternoon, making an incredible twisting interception off of Bo Nix, a future first-round pick. It was a sign of big things to come from Starks, who went on to be an All-American last season for the Bulldogs.
Entering 2024, he’s a realistic candidate to be the best defensive player in the country.
“Malaki is going to play like he practiced today, I hope, which is toughness, great eyes, really good athlete, playmaker on the ball,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said of Starks. “He’s a good football player. I don’t want to see anything necessarily out of him. I just want to see him do what he does every day at practice.”
Starks has been sharing some veteran wisdom to his younger teammates ahead of Saturday’s game. There’s understandably a lot of attention surrounding 5-star Georgia freshman KJ Bolden as he gets ready to make his first career appearance.
Bolden may not start for Georgia, as Starks — a player Smart has compared Bolden to — did not do so in his first career game. But through Starks’ own experiences, he knows how to help keep others grounded.
“I didn’t want to let down the team when I had the chance to get in. Just tried to enjoy it,” Starks said. “I talked to my mom that morning, and she told me, ‘You only get one chance to be a freshman so enjoy it while you’ve got it.’ I remember waking up that morning and sitting at the table with Chris (Smith) and Dan (Jackson) and everybody eating. Really just being in the moment and being where my feet were and not getting too far ahead of myself. It’s kind of the same message that I’ve been relaying to them.”
In all likelihood, this will be Starks’ final season at Georgia. He’s viewed as a top draft pick in the 2025 NFL Draft and has already won a national championship at Georgia. He’s 28-1 in his Georgia career.
But Starks isn’t worried about what lies ahead. That line of thinking runs counter to what he tells his teammates.
And the Georgia safety is big on practicing what he preaches.
“Everybody seems to be doing good,” Starks said. “I’ve just been telling them the same thing that people were telling me: just take it day by day, play by play, see a little but don’t see too much and enjoy it. You only get one shot. Just enjoy it while you’ve got it and just be calm.”
