Longhorns Commit Maalik Murphy Debuts At No. 8 in SI All American's QB Rankings

SI All American unveiled the first half of their quarterback rankings for the 2022 class on Thursday, with Longhorns QB commit Maalik Murphy making an appearance in the top-10

Matt Galatzan | Jul 8, 2021

Texas Longhorns quarterback commit Maalik Murphy is one of the most intriguing quarterback prospects in the entire 2022 class.

On the one hand, he is a raw prospect with minimal on-field experience, who will take a good amount of refining before being ready to compete at the college level.

On the other, he is one of the most physically gifted players in the entire recruiting class, capable of making any throw on the football field, and is coming off a second-place finish at the Elite 11 Finals.

That disparity has led many to question where exactly it is Murphy belongs in the quarterback rankings list from a national perspective heading into his senior season.

On Thursday, however, SI All-American's John Garcia revealed his initial quarterback rankings list, placing the Longhorn commit in the top-10 at No. 8 -- just one spot below LSU Commit Walker Howard, and one spot above Florida commit, Nick Evers.

Here is what Garcia had to say about Murphy:

8. Maalik Murphy

Vitals: 6-5, 225

School: Gardena (Calif.) Junipero Serra

Committed To: Texas

In our previous running we talked about a couple of California prospects that were ranked high due more to their tools than their proven production or experience. There isn’t a more projectable quarterback in the country than Murphy. At 6-5 and 225 pounds, Murphy already has elite size, and one look at his body and you know there’s another 10-15 pounds in there waiting to get developed.

Murphy doesn’t have a cannon that you might expect from someone with his size, but there isn’t a throw he can’t make. His touch and downfield passing ability stand out, and his feel for the game despite being so inexperienced says all you need to know about his football IQ. As Murphy gains more experience you’ll see him improve his timing as a passer, and as he fills out and gets stronger you’ll see him get some needed zip on the low trajectory throws between the 20-30 yard range and the deep outside comeback throws.\

Murphy isn’t much of a runner, but he has good balance and nimble feet, which allows him to quickly set and throw from the pocket, when he’s stepping up or when he’s outside. At times his footwork will get crossed up and he ends up throwing off his front foot, which saps him of some power, but as he gets stronger this too will become less of an issue.

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Published Jul 8, 2021

MATT GALATZAN

Matt Galatzan is the Managing Editor and Publisher of Texas Longhorns On SI and Texas A&M Aggies On SI and a long-time member of the Football Writer’s Association of America. He graduated from the University of Mississippi, where he studied integrated marketing communications, with minors in journalism and business administration. Galatzan started in the sports journalism industry in 2014 covering the Dallas Mavericks and SMU Mustangs with 247Sports. He then moved to Sports Illustrated's Fan Nation network in 2020, eventually being taking over as the Managing Editor and Publisher of the Longhorns and Aggies sites a year later. You can find Galatzan on all major social media channels, including Twitter on @MattGalatzan.