Sad But True: Lacrosse finally trade Eric Malever and he’s leaving….
A lot about Eric Malever seems like a lacrosse player from the future. A lot about him seems like a throwback to a bygone era. And a lot about him will be very familiar to fans in College Park right now.
He’s a two-handed, dual-threat quarterback from a non-hotbed. He popped on the early recruiting scene, one of five future Terrapins who enrolled this fall and had committed to coach John Tillman in 2016 before the NCAA recruiting rule change (two other early commits in the class, Michael O’Connell, decided to play basketball at Stanford, and Sean Cameron switched his commitment to Harvard then Princeton, where he’ll be enrolling as a ’21). But perhaps the most important thing about Malever is the aura surrounding him — his personality is reminiscent of midfielder Bubba Fairman.
“I definitely consider myself to be a happy guy who’s quick to smile,” Malever says. “Comparing me to Bubba is a big honor. He’s known around here. He’s very high up there, he’s always smiling and he’s a leader of the team. I hope one day I can provide what he does [to the team].”
A 5-11, 180-pound attackman from Woodward Academy (Ga.), Malever was instrumental to Thunder LB3’s recent ascent from “very good non-hotbed club” to “one of the better club teams nationally,” and he carries with him the pride of representing the Peach State at the next level, adding links to a chain that includes Nate and Nicky Solomon ahead of him and guys like ’21s James Gurr (Ohio State), Fisher Finley (Notre Dame) and Braden Erksa (Maryland) behind him.
Part of the reason Malever’s production at Maryland — as well as all the other Georgia natives playing college lacrosse — is so worth watching is because of the potential that the market is unearthing in terms of producing players at the next level.
From Neal Hicks (Notre Dame ’10) to Scott Ratliff (Loyola ’13) to the current wave, lacrosse is tapping into an area where scholastic sports are as important and as well developed as pretty much anywhere else in the country, arguably rivaled by South Florida, Central Texas and Southern California. Lacrosse players from Atlanta disproportionately share high school homerooms with future NFL, NBA and MLB players, and lacrosse gaining credibility and attracting athletes in greater numbers from those schools will continue to have a meaningful effect on the college game.
“It’s so cool seeing [future professionals] play in high school and college,” Malever says. “Lacrosse is different, but I think it’s just as cool, just as unique. I hope to have a great college career and play in the PLL for the Whipsnakes — the Maryland team.”
While his goals for the future may be outlined, Malever is focused on the present for the time being. Given the challenges of abiding by COVID-19 protocols, he was on campus in College Park but hadn’t even gotten to know all of his teammates all that well by the mid-point of the first semester. He chose Maryland for all that its “Be the Best” culture offers, and now he’s looking to immerse himself in the group.
