THE SITUATION
Malik Nabers found a special reason to celebrate this Tuesday.
In addition to turning 17 ahead of his senior year, Nabers committed to Mississippi State, signaling the end of a recruitment that saw its peak over the spring after a breakout junior campaign at Lafayette (La.) Comeaux High School in which he amassed more than 1,200 yards and 21 total touchdowns while piling up 30-plus scholarship offers.
Mississippi State beat out Georgia for the four-star receiver that is currently ranked No. 8 in the state of Louisiana for 2021. Oklahoma, Notre Dame, Miami, Kentucky and Louisville were also heavily involved in the Nabers sweepstakes. LSU was also showing a high degree of interest in the Acadiana-area prospect, but did not offer.
Nabers will play his senior season at Lafayette (La.) Southside High School.
Nabers was a high priority target for Coach Mike Leach and the Bulldogs coaching staff. He and fellow commitment Theodore Knox were at the top of the Bulldogs' 2021 board and now have both on board as the calendar flips to August.
Nabers is the 12th addition to State's 2021 recruiting class, which entered the day right outside the top-50 nationally on the Rivals team rankings. He's the fourth receiving along with the aforementioned Knox and in-state three-stars Corey Ellington and Brandon Buckhaulter.
IN HIS OWN WORDS
"I feel like it was the right time and it was a good day ... and a special day to commit on my birthday ... It was (two) big accomplishments in life."
"I picked Mississippi State because of the loyalty and my relationship with Coach (Mike) Leach there and the new offense ... I fit in perfectly."
"(Assistant) Mason Smith recruited me to the end and was honest and loyal and (I liked) the way they showed me how (they) can give me the ball and let me work in open space is great ... I've got (four-star Texas wide receiver and Louisiana native) Teddy Knox right on (the) side of me and we can be unstoppable."
RIVALS REACTION
At 6-foot and 190 pounds, Nabers is a three-sport athletes that is well-known on the football field but also dabbles in track and field as well as basketball. Football is his forte and he enjoyed a breakout year in the Comeaux offense as a junior in 2019 as he reeled in 58 catches for 1,223 yards and 21 touchdowns.
Breaking that down a bit further, Nabers averaged better than 21 yards per catch. Also, almost every third reception went for a score.
Nabers owns a 23-second 200-meter time. Speed is an area of his game that is currently in the works. He has clocked unverified 40 times in the 4.5 to 4.6-second range, but certainly plays with enough speed based on film and multiple in-person evaluations.
Nabers possesses excellent hands and makes hand-catches away from the body with ease. He has the ability to make outstretched catches and has a knack for spectacular highlight-reel grabs.
Nabers is an advanced route-runner that can overcome speed limitations with fantastic breaks in and out of his routes to separate from defenders in coverage. Nabers is an elite pass-catcher when it comes to contested grabs. Even when he's covered, he's open, and he has the ability to beat double- and triple-teams at times.
Nabers owns a spectacular vertical jump and is a 50-50 ball aficionado. His ability to jump, make hands-catches and do so over defenders in coverage is certainly worth noting. It's essentially a cheat code, which we'll come to see more of in Leach's pass-heavy offense with plenty of volume in this category.
The Comeaux offensive coaches did a fantastic job of allowing Nabers to get isolated on screens or open in space and allow him to create chunk plays. He's a downhill runner and quickly turns up after the catch. He's a downhill runner that takes long strides with a nose for the football.
Nabers will need to continue to polish up route-running, build out his frame and try to improve his track times before arriving in Starkville. Separation will be a major area of his game to fine-tune, but with good route-running and the ability to win on contested catches helps him to overcome those limitations.