Dynamite Dozen: Singleton looks for big final statement at North Cobb

Heading into his senior season, North Cobb quarterback Malachi Singleton is coming off the strength of a prolific 2021 performance.

The 6-foot-1, 225-pound signal-caller completed 168 of 225 pass attempts for 2,348 yards, with 24 touchdowns and three interceptions. He also rushed 160 times for 1,037 yards and 25 more scores.

Singleton said he has been working on improving the little things over the offseason as he continues to sharpen his skills.

“My mechanics, you know, just being real sharp,” Singleton said. “I've taken practice really seriously this year -- this spring, this summer -- just making sure I'm working on the little details and practice and not getting bored with stuff. Just taking the little pieces and building them up.”

One of the challenges Singleton will face this season is compensating for the loss of wide receivers De’Nylon Morrissette and Sam Mbake, who are now at Georgia and Arkansas, respectively.

“It’s hard to replace those guys, but the players now, they’re working really hard,” Singleton said. “We’ve been doing a lot of training on our own, trying to get chemistry and stuff like that. We’ve got a lot of good guys, guys who watched De’Nylon and Sam in practice, got a lot from them and will be stars here to come.”

North Cobb coach Shane Queen said Singleton has improved significantly as a passer over the course of his high school career.

“When he first got to us, everybody said he was a running back playing quarterback, but he has worked so hard to develop his craft, and last year, he completed 75% of his passes,” Queen said. “You know, nobody thought he could go to the Elite 11 and do what he did there. He's just got that 'it' factor. Whatever Malachi decides to do and puts his mind to, he's going to be successful, whether it's on the football field, in the classroom or going out in the community and being the face of our community.”

Singleton said he models his game after former Harrison quarterback Justin Fields, who is now with the NFL's Chicago Bears.

“I watched him in high school, when I was in middle school, to watch almost every game of his in college, and now in the NFL,” Singleton said. “I work with the same trainer he does, so a lot of stuff he does, I try to model my game after. He can run and throw at the highest level.”

A four-star recruit, Singleton is committed to the Arkansas, which he said did the best job of making him feel wanted.

“Arkansas recruited me the hardest, showed they wanted me, made slides showing how they were going to use me and stuff like that,” Singleton said. “Just all of that came into play. I really built a bond with the coaches and built a good relationship with them.”

Singleton said watching current Razorbacks quarterback KJ Jefferson helped him see how he could fit in the Arkansas offense.

“I watched his game, watched a lot of their games this past season,” Singleton said. “I can do a lot of stuff that they do, and it’s pretty similar to what I do now in high school.”

For now, Singleton’s focus remains on taking North Cobb as far as possible this season, with a state championship as the ultimate goal.

“The ceiling of this team is really high. (We’ve) got a lot of talent. It just has to come together, bond, build chemistry,” Singleton said. “The ultimate goal, the state championship, I feel like everybody on this team believes it.”