When the Louisville Cardinals needed a sports hero following the madness of 2020, they got two.
Most citizens of Louisville will give you their own personalized account of the events surrounding the death of Breonna Taylor, biased or not. It was a brief, but necessary, era of racial and cultural uprising of the likes the city had never seen before.
Although the varying synopses from storytellers may differ in plot angles, one detail remains parallel throughout them all – the image of the city of Louisville took the brunt of collateral damage.
Louisville, like many other cities, takes pride in its history. Along the way, many Americana heroes have carved their own legacy into its fingerprint. George Rogers Clark and Thomas Edison to name a couple.
But this town is a sports town. Thus, its illustrious heroes have become synonymous with their athletic prowesses.
Most famously, perhaps, is Muhammad Ali. Born and raised in Louisville’s “Nest in the West” End, birth-named Cassius Clay made a name for himself early on via hard-nosed work ethic, unbridled determination, and a personality as bright as a field of Goldenrods.
He was as tough and fearless as he was charismatic, a textbook Louisvillian.
tough-ness noun
- the state of being strong enough to withstand adverse conditions or rough handling.
- the ability to deal with hardship or to cope in difficult situations
fear-less-ness noun
- the absence of fear
Heros of the past
Now, being a Louisville citizen doesn’t always mean rooting for the University of Louisville. Therefore, being a Louisville citizen may not consist of looking up to U of L athletes. Case in point: Muhammad Ali.
But there have been several sports heroes that have donned the red and black that we will cherish forever as part of the city’s sewn fabric. Angel McCoughtry, Darrell Griffith, Wes Unseld, and Lamar Jackson are some of the first names that come to mind. Throw in Denny Crum. Throw in Asia Durr. Throw in Lenny Lyles. Hell, this could be an entirely separate convo altogether.
Aside from prolificacy in a Louisville jersey, the question becomes this: what is the essence of a Louisville hero, and what characteristics do Louisvillians pursue in a sports hero? The answer is simple. We look up to athletes that we can relate to the most. Those that exemplify the 502 grit.
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Hard times
For as long as most fans remember, Louisville has always had at least one gaping eyesore in the athletic department on some level. Before Howard Schnellenberger, Bobby 1.0, Charlie Strong, and perhaps Scott Satterfield, it was the football team. Before Dan McDonnell, it was the baseball team. Before Jeff Walz, it was women’s basketball (not a problem at all anymore). And through those fogs, U of L has continued to employ the ability to foster talented athletes, even as an underdog.
Take the 1991 Fiesta Bowl for example. Louisville was up against a college football giant in Alabama. They were looked over. They were viewed as a primadonna. And they steamrolled the Crimson Tide 34-7. Poetry. But what names stood out in that conquest?
Browning Nagle. Ted Washington. Mike Flores. They led us there when no one thought it was on the table even a few years prior. Toughness. Fearlessness. Words that had slowly seeped into the 502’s DNA over time. “Us against the world” energy.
But where does the city get this chip on its shoulder? Is it the “little brother” thing? Was it the growing out of having a junkyard on its waterfront? Is it rural Kentuckians saying JCPS schools are sub-par? Is it being labeled a dangerous wasteland following the protests in 2020? Is it wanting its own identity after constantly being lumped in with the aw-shucks backwoods heritage that is the Bluegrass State?
YES.
But there are more layers to peel back. U of L is STILL dealing with the loose-wheel circus that is the NCAA stemming from Louisville basketball allegations that began almost a decade ago now. And its been a wild ride – with constant whiplash.
Couple that with 2018 football’s record of 2-10, one of the worst teams in college football history on paper. Morale was extremely low. But like hard times in the past, the city is just trying to march forward and leave the negative press in the rearview. A place that has always had someone to lift it back up, a beacon of sorts, needed one badly following the compound fractures of the athletic department’s woes and the city’s social division. Louisville needed a sports hero. Or perhaps two…..
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The two Maliks
A pair of 5th-year seniors these days doesn’t always mean the brightest star in the locker room. In fact, more often than not, superstars in this day and age are getting younger and younger every year. Louisville’s last couple of heroes on the gridiron played less than four years (Jackson, Teddy Bridgewater).
2016 was a golden year at the university. Lamar was floating on a magic carpet, Donovan Mitchell was cutting gravity, and ignorance was bliss. The U of L athletic department was humming.
Along with everything already going on at campus, Louisville introduced the city and the fanbase to a couple promising young athletes, Malik Cunningham and Malik Williams.
Cunningham, who hails from Montgomery, Alabama, passed on a number of big-name offers to come play quarterback for the Cardinals. Even Bama’s Nick Saban had wanted to see him rock the crimson only to play safety, a position he was familiar with, and good at, respectively. Over the next couple of years, he would develop into Louisville’s starting QB, ultimately leading the Cards to the 2019 Music City Bowl victory.
There was much high praise of Cunningham from fans following that campaign, Satterfield’s inaugural season at the helm. And though 2020 was rough for him, he has remained steadfast and focused on improving this season.
Traits of a hero
I spoke with a couple of Cunningham’s former teammates, Robbie Bell and Boosie Whitlow, about their time as his teammate at Louisville.
“Malik (Cunningham) has dealt with countless doubters going into and during every season, but he’s always stayed positive… Outside of interceptions last season, every other statistic has gotten better each season,” Bell said.
True heroes show grit. Determination yields results. In the face of adversity, Cunningham forged himself into a leadership role.
“He has always been fearless. He was vocal. He never doubted his age when it came to leading. He kind of reminded me of Lamar (Jackson),” Whitlow said.
There’s that word again. Fearless. Traits of a hero.
“He’s very smart, open-hearted, and willing to put others before himself. He’s grounded and very humble,” Whitlow said.
Six games into the 2021 season, Cunningham is gaining momentum nationally by doing what he has always done for his team. Every step of the way, he has shown he’s more than just a great athlete, but a genuine human being as well.
“Malik was always fun and lighthearted at practice. He always just tried to have fun and enjoy it. He just leads with a smile, and showing up every day ready to work with a good attitude,” Bell said.
Not going down without a fight
Like Cunningham, Williams has been a pillar of the athletic department and the city through pitfalls of his own. Showing a lot of upside in his first few years, heading into the 2020-21 season, Williams suffered an injury that would hamper him for the rest of the year.
I chatted with his former teammates Akoy Agau and Keith Oddo about what Williams was like at Louisville, given everything he’s been through.
“No matter what is thrown at Malik, he won’t go down without a fight. He confronts issues like a grown man, mature beyond his years,” Oddo said.
Williams recently earned the title of team captain for the third straight year. A U of L basketball first.
“Malik holds everyone accountable and embraces the uncomfortable conversations which held everyone to a higher standard. He has a dog mentality that is contagious to every player and coach. You see how hard he plays in games. A true competitor,” Oddo said.
When it comes to leading, you have to be able to incorporate humanity into it all.
“Off the court, he is laid back. He’s really one of the most authentic individuals I’ve ever been around,” Oddo said.
Consistent praise flowed in from Agau.
“He was always honest, fun to be around, and just an all-around good guy. “When it came to basketball he was extremely competitive and wanted the best for his teammates first before himself, the ultimate unselfish player,” Agau said.
Like Cunningham, Williams possesses the qualities it takes to be a true captain.
Alas, a great leader must walk the walk as well.
“As great as his communication skills were, he always lead by example on the court, being early to get shots up, staying after practice to work on his game, and also getting in the gym on his own time to get better. He wanted to always be his best, so he was ready for every moment in which the team may need him. That is why Malik is the ultimate leader and the first 3x captain at Louisville,” Agau said.
Was it coincidence or divine intervention that Louisville’s need for a sports hero collided with the arrival of its two most Louisville-esque athletic personalities? Either way, the city has embraced them as their own, and the fanbase follows their lead.
“This city is built on toughness, and Malik embraces that to the fullest. The city is home to all of us who put on that jersey, but to Malik, who has been here through the highs and the lows, he takes it personally. To him, if we lose as a team, that is the city losing as a whole,” Oddo said.
One city, two captains. Two heroes. Two Maliks.
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