Desert Pines #10 Malik Stinnett takes the ball from Faith Lutheran quarterback #13 Rylan Walter as he is tackled by #42 Idgerinn Dean during a football game at Desert Pines High School Friday, Oct. 14, 2022.
Thursday, Feb. 2, 2023 | 2 a.m.
One of the first orders of business when Desert Pines High School senior Malik Stinnett arrived at Bethune-Cookman University last month for an official visit with the school’s football program was a meeting with new coach Ed Reed, the former NFL star.
Stinnett and other recruits then checked into a hotel for the night, eager to continue the remaining of their introduction to the Daytona Beach, Fla., university.
Shortly thereafter, the trip took a turn: Reed was no longer the coach. The university didn’t ratify his contract in light of a social media video in which Reed went on a rant about the school’s poor facilities.
Stinnett, a linebacker, nevertheless on Wednesday signed a national letter-of-intent to play for Bethune-Cookman University, a historically Black college and university. He was offered a scholarship before Reed became coach and says the history of the school and chance to be part of the Southwestern Athletic Conference’s pageantry outweighs the coaching drama.
“One minute I am talking to coach Reed. The next, they don’t have a head coach,” Stinnett recalled. “That is crazy. ... But I still have to handle my business. I loved the culture down there and can’t wait to be part of it.”
That history includes Mary McLeod Bethune, the university’s founder who is buried on campus. Her former home is still maintained on campus and part of the tour for hopeful students.
“There are great opportunities there academically and athletically,” Stinnett said.
Stinnett earns praise from Desert Pines coach Tico Rodriguez for his smarts, both on the football field and classroom, where Stinnett says he maintains a 3.9 grade-point average.
His four years in high school surely prepared him for what could be next in college.
His sophomore season was canceled because of the pandemic. As a junior, the season was constantly starting and stopping because of COVID-19 exposures in the program.
Yet, Rodriguez said, Stinnett was a leader with his teammates and someone who never missed a beat. “Just a great kid to be around,” the coach said.
Stinnett, who also had a scholarship offer from Alabama State, another HBCU school plans to study business and accounting. He also hopes to join the military after college graduation.
Stinnett was one of about eight seniors from Desert Pines who signed Wednesday on national signing day, including linemen Idgerinn Dean and Savior Manuma signing with Northern Arizona University.
That’s a significant feat for Rodriguez and his staff, who like many prep coaches trying to place their players at the next level, realized the spots were limited. Many colleges, especially those in the Mountain West Conference, filled a majority of their remaining scholarships with college transfers.
Those players from the transfer portal are more physically developed and can immediately help the program, whereas using a scholarship on a player straight from high school comes with the risk that they don’t reach their potential.
That forced many players — and not only from Desert Pines — to scramble to find a college home. Some had to settle for a spot at a junior college, where the odds of making it to Division I are steep.
Still, having multiple teammates reach the next level is something Stinnett is proud of. After all, his graduating class had three years of high school altered by the pandemic.
“We never stopped training,” he said. “We are getting everything we worked hard for.”
