The era of football is now bigger than ever, seemingly just about every American wants to be a part of a team. Whether by playing, being a fanatic, watching or even coaching. The popularity of the sport has gone international: Europe, Guam, and Australia are among just a few of the areas where football has gained interest. The Tradition of American Football can be seen in our history for over 100 years. Louisville Male High School (Louisville, Kentucky) is one of the first programs to offer football. On Saturday, November 18th, 1893 the annual Male-Manual High School Football rivalry began. It was the longest running, continuously played high school football series. Louisville Male High is a perennial football power in the Bluegrass state of Kentucky. Male is also the 3rd winningest football program in America, and #1 in Kentucky. Male also has a rivalry with Trinity High School, one of the nation's best current high school football programs. However, Trinity (most years) won't schedule Male in the regular season. Louisville Male boasts 6 state titles in football,  and 3 state runner-ups. Two players, Twin brothers' Malik and Micheal Malone play for the Male football team, and love everything about the history and success of the program. Malik is a 5'9", 210lbs, plays LB/FB and logged a solid amount of playing-time as a sophomore (2011) for a team that consistently has D-1 talent. Micheal is 5'9",180 lbs, and plays ILB/OLB for Louisville Male, with good minutes played as well.

 

We caught up with Malik and Micheal and asked them what it's like playing for a program (Male) that has so much tradition and excellence.

When you have a waiting line for the "Chain Gang" that is a community serious about their football and school. Louisville Male also has a strict dress code and a lottery for students to get in, due to the reputation of the school. The football program also contains many former or current NFL players including Chris Redman, Michael Bush, and Marcus Green among others. We asked the twin brothers what they'd like to prove to colleges/coach's in the next few years:

response from Malik: "What i would like to prove to the college coaches is that i am a dedicated player that loves the game and put my heart into the game. I want to show the coaches how tough i am on the field and how quick i am on blitz on the inside and the outside. I want to show the colleges how my grind in the offseason will effect my shine in the fall."

These young prospects want to get their names out there, especially this upcoming 2012 season, they  know the first goal is state, and everything else will fall into place. Now that Micheal and Malik Malone will be juniors look out for these two, they told us they are on a mission this off-season to train very hard, and are willing to put in long hours in the summer, not only in training, but film study as well. Which is another crucial ingredient in gaining insight on the opponent, and finding tendencies on the gridiron. Since most family members don't ever get that chance to play competitively with one another, we asked Malik and Micheal what's it like playing along side each other,

response from malik: "It's a blast playing with my brother because we bring the hype on the field for the team. On the field they call us click and clack because when we hit, we hit hard. It's like playing backyard football again, when me and my brother are on the field we have a ball. It feels like no one can stop us."   response from micheal malone: "Wow, it is an amazing feeling. The reason I say that is because freshman year we never got to be on the field together cause to him playing strictly fullback, but now it's something special playing right next to my brother, because I know that I can trust that he will get the job done on his side of the field. And most importantly we have FUN on the field but at the same time get our job done."

 I don't personally come out with my own opinion too often, but i think these two have a special future ahead of themselves. As many know being a twin forms an unspoken bond with one another. Whether it's football, academics, life, or advice these twins may have to play football at different locations one day. Malik and Micheal weighed in on the thought of playing separately after high school:

Malik: "I would love to play on the same team as my brother if given a chance but if we don't, it would be the first time ever of not being on the same team that would be weird  for me, but i would get over it, sooner or later."

response from micheal malone: "Basically the same malik said, I would love going to play for the same college program as my brother, but if we don't have the same interest in colleges than I guess we would have to go our separate ways." Look for Malik and Micheal Malone at a College Campus in 2014, for now they have no scholarship offers!