Towering senior Malik McDowell is the talk of Southfield High.

McDowell is the number two high school player in the state and the newest member of the Blue Jays Varsity Football Team.

Last season McDowell played for the Loyola Bull Dogs. Loyola is a co-educational Catholic high school in Detroit. He averaged 8 tackles a game.

He moved to Southfield over the summer and now plays for the Blue Jays.

Loyola Athletic Director Thomas Dobbs did not return calls by press time to comment on McDowell’s move.

“I’m glad to officially be a Blue Jay,” McDowell says. “I feel that this is going to be a very successful season for my team and myself.”

Football coach Timothy Conley says, “The team is happy to have him this year.”

But McDowell’s talent on the field isn’t the only thing catching everyone’s eye. He stands at 6 feet 7 inches, weighing a solid 280 pounds. His jersey number – 67 – reflects his height. He is, without a doubt, the new big man on campus.

Coach Conley says that McDowell’s jumbo size and bullet speed are beneficial to his positions as defensive end and defensive tackle.

In every game, McDowell pancakes a blocker or sacks the quarterback.

McDowell benefits the team by putting a lot of pressure on his opponents, Conley says.

Teammate Lawrence Marshall says it is a pleasure having McDowell on the team because McDowell is always helping him and their teammates on and off of the field.

McDowell started playing football at age 7 with the West Side Cubs in Detroit. He says his father, Greg, encouraged him to play football. He’s been in love with the sport ever since.

This being his senior year and his last season playing high school football, McDowell

says he plans to put in hard work and 100 percent intensity to help lead his team to more victories.

They’ve already crushed Farmington High School by a score of 32 to 7, West Bloomfield (48-0) and Oak Park (20-12). They narrowly defeated Harrison 20-19 and they lost a pre-season scrimmage to Cass Tech 18 -14.

McDowell is also a retired basketball player; he is not playing basketball this year because he wants to focus on school and his upcoming college football season.

Although he has many offers from Division 1 schools all over the country, including Alabama State, Michigan State, and Florida State, he says he hasn’t quite decided which school he’ll attend. Right now McDowell says he’s dedicated to his high school team.