MORGANTOWN, W. Va. — Nick Malone is getting one more chance to suit up in his high school career before joining the WVU football team as a preferred walk-on this summer.
As the lone representative of Monongalia County for the annual North-South Football Classic, set for noon Saturday at South Charleston High, Malone wanted to go up against the best of the bets West Virginia has to offer because that’s what he’s going to have to do with the Mountaineers.
“I think this is going to make me better, honestly,” the now Morgantown alum said. “Overall, making new friends is a plus, too. Everyone here are all cool guys and capable of playing at a high level.”
The 6-foot-6, 280-pound offensive lineman will begin classes at WVU as soon as his trip south is over, this week is a time to have fun before getting into the grind of a college athlete.
The North-South preparation includes a week-long camp that consists of two-a-days, meals, comradery, activities and a tight schedule. Players stay at Dawson Hall at West Virginia State University with breakfast beginning at 7:15 a.m. and lights out enforced at midnight.
Each practice lasts two hours with one in the morning and another in the afternoon, beginning with no pads early in the week and gradually adding more contact as the week goes on.
It’s not quite a college football schedule, but it’s close.
“They’re pretty intense,” Malone said. “Going against the best of the best is pretty tiring. I wouldn’t say it’s that much like a college practice but it’s pretty close. The drills they have us do, the way we learn offensive plays and defensive plays are sort of college-like.”
The week isn’t all business, though. On Tuesday, the teams competing at the bowling alley rather than the football field. On Wednesday, they went to Regal Cinemas in Nitro to see “John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum” or “Brightburn.”
Making either team is a reward for a successful high school career, and for Malone, that was going from a raw lineman with obvious size to a Division-I prospect.
“They say we’re the best of the best in the state so it’s an honor to be here with everyone.”
Malone isn’t sure how many reps he’ll get, but he has been practicing on both sides of the ball. It could be the last time he plays competitively on the defensive side.
Coach A.J. Harman, of Liberty-Harrison, will lead North, while David Moneypenny, of Fayetteville, will guide South.
Twitter @SeanManning_DP
