Malik Cunningham always gives the Louisville Cardinals a chance to win when he is on the field.
While it remains to be seen how much time Scott Satterfield has left leading the Louisville Cardinals, people cannot get enough out of their starting quarterback in Malik Cunningham.
Although nobody will ever be what Lamar Jackson was for the Cardinals under Bobby Petrino, Cunningham is a close facsimile in some regards. He is an elite dual-threat playmaker who can makes big-time plays with his arm and his legs. For Louisville to tread water in what will be a tight ACC Atlantic this season, Cunningham will have to play his best college football to date for them.
Here are all the important facts you need to know about the Louisville starting quarterback.
Malik Cunningham age
Cunningham was born Oct. 6, 1998 in Montgomery, Alabama. Although he is 23 years old at the start of the 2022 college campaign, he will finish his last season at Louisville at the ripe old age of 24. Cunningham wisely used his COVID year to his advantage so that he can be back in school for a sixth college season. Experience is one of the greatest things he has going for him as an intangible.
Where did Malik Cunningham go to high school?
Cunningham grew up in Montgomery and played his high school football at Park Crossing High School. He threw for 6,276 yards and 71 touchdowns during his high school career, completing 63 percent of his passes. As a runner, Cunningham amassed 1,926 yards on the ground and an additional 32 trips to pay dirt. He was seen the best Alabama high school quarterback in his grade.
Malik Cunningham height and weight
Cunningham is listed at 6-foot-1 and 190 pounds over on GoCards.com. While his weight lies somewhere in the 190 to 200-pound range, his height always comes in at 6-foot-1. Though traditionally undersized for the quarterback position, Cunningham uses his foot speed to his advantage to avoid would-be tacklers to extend plays, while being able to deliver an accurate ball.
Malik Cunningham transfer history
Cunningham initially committed to Louisville way back on April 16, 2016. Despite his early commitment, Cunningham did not sign with Louisville until National Signing Day 2017 in February. Thus, he did not enroll early at the University of Louisville. He arrived on campus on July 25, 2017 and has been with the Cardinals football program ever since. Therefore, he has never transferred.
Malik Cunningham recruiting profile
Despite his illustrious high school playing career, Cunningham was not highly touted coming out. According to the 247Sports Composite, Cunningham was the No. 24 overall player from Alabama, the No. 33 athlete (yes, athlete…) in his class and the No. 501 prospect in the recruiting cycle. He had 12 official offers, picking Louisville over the likes of Georgia, Georgia Tech, Kentucky and LSU.
For an unheralded recruit coming to Louisville around the time Action Jackson was still dominating the college football world, Cunningham has massively overachieved his recruiting ranking. His size hurts him from being a top-tier NFL Draft prospect, but his accuracy and running ability gives him a chance to potentially be something at the next level. He might have to make a position switch…
Win or lose, the Cardinals have something special for one more year under center in Cunningham.
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