“Malachi blew us away with his growth from last year. I figured we could rattle him or their offense, but he never blinked and literally did not have one ball off target to his wide receivers all night.”

Dan O’Shea

Head Coach - head coach of Corona del Mar High

Athletic Excellence

The 6-foot-3, 180-pound sophomore quarterback led the Griffins to a 6-0 record this past season. Nelson passed for 1,513 yards and 23 touchdowns, completing 73.9 percent of his throws and averaging an astounding 13.2 yards per attempt. He threw for 376 yards and a school-record seven touchdowns in one half against Huntington Beach High. A 2020 MaxPreps Sophomore All-American, Nelson was the Golden Gun Accuracy Challenge winner at the Elite 11 Los Angeles Regional last June. He is ranked as the nation’s No. 2 recruit in the Class of 2023 by Rivals.com.

Academic Achievement

Nelson has maintained a 3.72 GPA in the classroom. He will begin his junior year of high school fall.

Exemplary Character

Nelson has volunteered locally as a youth football coach.