South Carolina DB commit Nick Emmanwori provides immense impact on, off-field at Irmo High School for Class of 2025 teammate Malachi Smith
Mentorship keeps Smith focused, hungry as Yellow Jackets continue playoff push against 9-2 Greenville Red Raiders tonight
Columbia, SC: Malachi Smith is a 6-foot, 163-pound Class of 2025 defensive back hailing from the Irmo High School Yellow Jackets, a perennial powerhouse that competes in South Carolina High School League's (SCHSL) Class AAAA (4A) football.
Smith made a quick transition from middle school to varsity as a high school freshman when he made the 8-mile trek to Irmo's campus, transferring from rival Dutch Fork this fall.
"I never played junior varsity in my life. I went straight to varsity from middle school," Smith said.
Smith, a 6-foot, 163-pound defensive back, will spend time this spring starring for the Capital City Smoke, a competitive 7-on-7 program that aids the development of quarterbacks, receivers, running backs, defensive backs, linebackers, and other skill players to increase their athletic toolkit.
Since arriving on campus, big senior Nick Emmanwori has shown Malachi the ropes of the football lifestyle at Irmo on and off the field, helping develop the young man's athletic skillset and character through his wise words of wisdom.
"Nick, that's my twin. He teaches me a lot. I follow in his footsteps. I have a ‘big brother-little brother; relationship with him," he said.
Nick is a 6-foot-3, 208-pound defensive back that anchors Irmo's unit, but that's not all.
Emmanwori, a three-star Class of 2022 South Carolina signee, is part of the first-year South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Shane Beamer's "blueprint" to rejuvenate a once-great program, one whom he served as assistant head coach for former head coach Steve Spurrier from 2007-10.
Emanwori flashes his ‘icy’ Batman gloves, which he wears while defending the endzone for the Yellow Jackets, who are 7-3 this season headed into a big-time matchup against the No. 2 seeded Greenville Red Raiders in the third round of the SCHSL 4A Playoffs tonight.
Spurrier, the winningest coach in school history, led the Gamecocks to an 86-49 overall record, three-top ten finishes, a 2010 SEC Eastern Division championship, and a 6-4 overall record in the Palmetto Bowl rivalry series against Clemson during his time in Columbia.
Much of South Carolina’s success was built on strong play from defensive backs hailing from the Palmetto State, and Beamer, who served as the Gamecocks’ recruiting coordinator from 2009-10, had a lot to do with that success. Four earned NFL Draft selections during the “Spurrier era,” along with many other out-of-state players.
Current Carolina Panthers standout Stephon Gilmore, a headliner in South Carolina’s Class of 2009 class that was ranked No. 12 in the nation according to Scout.com, is one shining example of a student-athlete that South Carolina fans will always remember.
Emmanwori embodies the cornerstone student-athletes that South Carolina used to utilize to attain their success: defensive backs hailing from the Palmetto State. Perhaps it was a reason that Beamer looked to Emmanwori: to try out that former winning formula once again.
Emanwori chose the Gamecocks over Charlotte, Georgia Southern, and Richmond, but make no mistake, he’s a big-time ballplayer. First-year head coach Shane Beamer and South Carolina got an early jump on the student-athlete, and Nick hasn’t looked back since, signing the dotted line at the state flagship institution on July 1, 2021.
In the meantime, Nick spends his time mentoring Smith, who looks to follow in his footsteps at Irmo.
"Every time I get in my own head or make a mistake, he (Nick) reminds me that I'm young, athletic, and have plenty of time left in my career," Smith said.
Malachi has already seen plenty of playing time as a 15-year-old, but he expects to be a starter in Fall 2022.
"I'm a freshman and I'm on the come up. We have a lot of seniors on our roster," Smith said.
One of Malachi's most memorable tackles occurred in last week's second-round playoff bout against No. 1 seed Westside during a road game on the road in Anderson last Fri., an area is known for its "high quality" of high school football play in the Palmetto State.
Irmo, a No. 3 seed, was already leading 42-20 with four minutes remaining in the contest. Malachi tracked down the Rams' kickoff returner, delivering the No. 10 tackle of his young varsity career.
The ball carrier was barreling his way towards a touchdown that would have allowed the Rams to make the contest a two-score game, but Smith's heroics, followed by an Irmo interception with about three minutes remaining, allowed the Yellow Jackets to put the 'nail in the coffin.'
The Yellow Jackets' freshman is also doing everything he can in the weight room and during the offseason to prove to coaches that he is worthy of a future scholarship offer. Malachi squats 350 pounds, benches 205 pounds, owns a 35.6-inch ‘personal best’ vertical jump, and runs a blazing-fast 4.53 40-yard dash.
His cheetah-like speed was demonstrated in last week's 'run down' tackle against Westside that prevented a Rams touchdown late in one of the final sequences of the big game…
After their collective 2021 season is complete, Nick will head to South Carolina to help return the Gamecocks to their former greatness, while Malachi will return to Irmo to continue to build the Yellow Jackets' legacy as a winning program in the SCHSL.
The future is bright for both ‘big brother’ Nick and ‘little brother’ Malachi.