Beyond the Hedges - Malaki Starks Comments on Playing the Star Position and His Big Interception

When Nick Saban was with the Cleveland Browns he invented what’s called the “star” position. The role is a hybrid between a linebacker and a defensive back. Coach Saban carried the position into his defenses with Alabama, which was then shared with former Alabama defensive coordinator Kirby Smart. Kirby has utilized the star position with all of his squads and it has become a staple of the Georgia defense. 

In this most recent game against Clemson, Georgia fans saw Malaki slide into that role and make an instant impact. Malaki played 28 snaps in the slot, 10 snaps in the box, and just 6 reps at free safety. Starks is extremely versatile as proven by the numbers, and seems to succeed in every role Coach Smart asks him to play. Malaki finished the season opener with 2 total tackles and a ridiculous interception in the 4th quarter. 

There have been some Georgia greats to rotate in and out of the position, two of the most recent two being Tykee Smith and Javon Bullard. Those two guys played a massive role in Georgia’s back to back national championship run from the star position. This past Saturday, due to a Joenel Aguero injury, we saw Malaki rotate into the box and true freshman KJ Bolden came in to play free safety. On the most recent episode of The Players’ Lounge “Beyond the Hedges”, Malaki was asked about how he felt about playing star. “I see it as, I go get a few reps at star, he (KJ Bolden) comes in at safety, and there’s more people on the field that can play winning football”, Starks said. 

Malaki talked about how talented the roster is, specifically the DB room. He said “we just have more people that are able to play winning football at a higher level”. 

Over the last few seasons, Georgia’s secondary has been fantastic, limiting air attacks, being physical, and making plays when they matter. The All-American DB went on to say “We have so many great athletes, when someone’s over here, there’s someone over there that you have to worry about.”

Starks mentioned multiple times how playing star is a fantastic way to be in the right place at the right time. Malaki said “(In the star position) you have a lot more opportunities to be in a position to make a play”, Dawg fans have seen Malaki make spectacular plays throughout his career at Georgia and his versatility is a massive reason why. 

Tune in to the full episode of “Beyond The Hedges” to hear Starks and Thornton discuss Malaki’s acrobatic interception against Clemson, and how it rivals his pick against Oregon.