Malachi Holt-Bennett Comes Home to Play for UAB

Catching up a bit on news from around the holidays. I've had plenty of fun reliving and/or learning about the pro football teams in the Birmingham but am becoming more and more of a fan of the university teams around the state in general and the city in particular. 

With that in mind, I need and want to learn more about some of the young men from Birmingham playing college ball, but am more interested in those doing so around town. We'll start today with Malachi Holt-Bennett returning home to play for UAB after transferring from Indiana.

Fairfield's Malachi Bennett (Dennis Victory | preps@al.com) from an August 8th, 2020, al.com article.

The following information is from a Crimson Quarry article following Holt-Bennett's decision to enter the transfer portal in early December.

Malachi Holt-Bennett joined Indiana in 2021 as a three-star recruit out of Fairfield, Alabama. He was the third highest-rated player in Tom Allen’s class of 2021, behind only Donaven McCulley and Jaquez Smith.

Holt-Bennett saw limited action in his first season with Indiana, but made that time count. His only reception of the season was a 29-yard touchdown catch in Indiana’s 35-14 loss to Minnesota.

In 2022, Holt-Bennett finished with six receptions for 90 yards, but did not find the end zone. He was seventh among wide receivers in yards this season, with five of the six players ahead of him currently set to return to Indiana next year.

Here's a detailed article from the February 4th, 2021, South Bend Tribune about Holt-Bennett's recruiting. I've trimmed some off but you can read the full version at this link. 

BLOOMINGTON — When Fairfield (Alabama) Prep coach Keon Handley outlines what Indiana is getting in the last piece of its 2021 recruiting class, receiver Malachi Bennett, he can’t help but think of what he’s giving up.

“This is a kid that, honestly, as a coach, if I didn’t have to share him with the world, I’d keep him until I retired,” Handley said.

Obviously, Bennett is talented. At 6-foot-2, nearly 190 pounds, he’s considered a four-star prospect by recruiting services. He’s so talented, Bennett took snaps with Fairfield High when he was in eighth grade. He was a receiver, but Handley moved him to quarterback as a freshman, just to get the ball in his hands more.

For sure, a versatile, long, athletic receiver with ball skills just committed to the Hoosiers on Tuesday, and he made things official Wednesday during national signing day. But Handley’s pride in Bennett goes beyond playmaking. Competing for an Alabama town that was ravaged by a tornado in 2017, Bennett has been a quintessential model citizen, becoming one of those beacons of light for a community in need of some positivity.

...

It’s been a long recruiting journey for Bennett. Again, he was anything but under the radar, and UAB — just an eight-minute drive from Fairfield’s campus — offered Bennett when he was a freshman. In August, Bennett shocked some prognosticators by initially choosing his hometown school over finalists that included Georgia, South Carolina, Louisville, and Ole Miss.

When Bennett decided to open things back up in November, the Hoosiers were able to make another pitch.

...

This is the Hoosiers continuing to build off their successes in 2020, which certainly affected Bennett’s decision-making process. IU has been on Handley’s radar, at least, since Jordan Howard transferred from UAB to the Hoosiers and made his way to the NFL. This past season just upped the program’s reputation.

Bennett, in return, brings an intriguing athletic background to the Hoosiers. His uncle is Earl Bennett, a former Vanderbilt receiver who played for the Chicago Bears from 2008-13. Along with his snaps under center and out wide, Bennett has also made plays as a defensive back for Fairfield. He had 29 tackles and two interceptions as a senior.

He has also starred on the hardwood for Fairfield. Bennett averaged better than 11 points and six rebounds per game for a state title team in 2020.

He is long, athletic, and fast. He has won with speed and in jump-ball situations. He is not necessarily a talker, but he will respond when shots are taken. He will block his chattiest adversaries until the whistle blows.

“He’s going to give you that million-dollar smile and laugh at you and let you know it’s going to be a long night,” Handley said. “If you really start talking to him, he’ll look back at you every time he catches the ball. He’ll let you know ‘You shouldn’t have woke me up. You shouldn’t have started this, because I’m going to finish it.’”

That combination of talent and character has made Bennett a foundational piece for Fairfield, beginning with those snaps at quarterback in 2017. He was slowed by a foot injury as a sophomore, but then he exploded for 45 catches, 821 yards and nine scores as a junior.

The pandemic set in during the spring, limiting Bennett’s ability to take official visits. But he still had his options, and Bennett initially picked UAB because of its family feel. Handley knows that kind of atmosphere was a priority for Bennett when his recruitment opened again in November.

And on December 21st, Malachi made it official on Twitter!

Cool stuff. Look forward to seeing him do his thing in the fall.