Ole Miss Defensive Lineman Tywone Malone Making His Presence Felt at Swayze
OXFORD, Miss. — Jim Thorpe, Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders are names we all know when it comes to making history on the gridiron. What sets them apart, however, is that they were also elite baseball players.
For a while it seemed the era of the multi-sport athlete was gone, but over the last few years we have seen a resurgence of the all-around athlete.
Ole Miss dual-sport talent Tywone Malone is the latest Rebel football player who is also a talent on the baseball diamond.
Prior to arriving in Oxford last year, Malone was a star in his native New Jersey. The former four-star defensive lineman and No.1 athlete in the state for 2021 saw limited action last season as he suffered an injury prior to his arrival at Ole Miss.
In the game he played, he made his presence known, recording three tackles, a tackle-for-loss, and one sack.
This dude's gonna be a problem…
🖥 https://t.co/fQPp7rmUkp@TywoneMalone | #HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/TyrGjf0L3s
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) September 12, 2021
Malone is fully recovered and you can bet he will be a force in the Vaught this fall as he gears up for his sophomore season on the defensive line.
But before then, he’s showing off his power over at Swayze as a member of the Ole Miss baseball team.
Coach Bianco and the Diamond Rebs officially open their 2022 season on February 18th with a three-game series against Charleston Southern. You can already feel the Swayze energy as Bianco’s bunch has started practicing and holding intrasquads.
A week ago, Malone made waves with an absolute beast of a two-run homer. It went 378 feet to right center and came off the bat at 106 mph.
Nothing to see here, just Ole Miss’ 6’4”, 310-pound defensive tackle and first baseman Tywone Malone hitting a 378-foot moonshot off the bat at 106 mph 🚀 pic.twitter.com/6p5i9aMbp0
— Grayson Weir (@GsonJW) February 7, 2022
Malone finished the day 2-for-5 with his home run, three runs-batted-in and two runs scored.
Tywone’s success in both sports is no fluke. He has worked hard, putting in a lot of blood, sweat and tears in the process.
We recently caught up with trainer and coach Leroy Thompson who saw and worked with the special talents that make Malone such a gifted athlete.
“Tywone is an extremely gifted athlete,” Thompson began.
“He’s one of the best I’ve ever trained. He has tremendous size, natural strength, speed, agility and hand-eye coordination. Even at 6’4, 310-pounds, he’s one of those pure athletes that could line up and play any sport he chooses. Hard worker and extremely confident in his abilities. Thats what makes Tywone Malone so elite!”
Coach Leroy Thompson
Nothing to see here, just Ole Miss’ 6’4”, 310-pound defensive tackle and first baseman Tywone Malone hitting a 378-foot moonshot off the bat at 106 mph 🚀 pic.twitter.com/6p5i9aMbp0
— Grayson Weir (@GsonJW) February 7, 2022
I know Rebel Nation is sure glad Tywone chose to bring not one, but TWO of his strengths to the ‘Sip.
ARE YOU READY FOR MIGHTY MALONE?
Lee Ann Herring-Olvedo
Lee Ann is the Director of Recruiting for The Rebel Walk. She is a veteran SEC sports journalist and NFL content writer. She is also the Sr. Editor for MESPORTS digital. Herring-Olvedo is a Brown University graduate who loves good cigars, good games, and a smooth glass of bourbon — not necessarily in that order.
