Rookie Spotlight: Malachi Corley, WR Western Kentucky

Height: 5-10 1/2″
Weight: 215
Hands: 9″
Arm: 30 7/8″
Age: 22 – (3/21/02)
40-yard dash: 4.42 (projected)

NFL Play-Style Comparison: Golden Tate, Deebo Samuel
Draft Grade: 4th-Round
Breakout Age: 19 (RS Freshman)

 

Offensive Market Share Metrics (Final Season)

Receptions: 23%
Receiving Yards: 26%
Receiving TDs: 29%

High School: Campbellsville (Campbellsville, Kentucky)
As a high school prospect: Class of 202o; 2-star cornerback
College Attended:  Western Kentucky

 

Pros
– Excellent core strength and contact balance, rarely tackled by the first defender.

– self-proclaimed YAC King… finished 5th in all of the FBS in 2023, with 683 yards after catch

– vision and quickness after the catch are impeccable and similar to

– Two-time All-Conference USA First Team

 

Cons

– limited route tree, a lot of work behind or near the LOS with occasional crossers and double moves downfield

– struggles in contested catch situations, but unlikely to work heavily there at the next level

– 92% of snaps came from the slot during his college career

– average depth of target has dropped each year from 7.8 to 5.5 since his freshman season

– sometimes leans on body catches, but shows ability to frame the ball with his hands

– slight lower quarter build, but elasticity to boot

 

 

Scouting Notes:
Malachi was recruited out of Campbellsville as a 167lb cornerback, with offers from Austin Peay,  Eastern Kentucky, and Murray State, he chose to commit to WKU, just an hour from home. During his second season, now Patriots Quarterback Bailey Zappe transferred to WKU and broke NCAA passing records on the way to a 9-5 season. With Zappe throwing for nearly 6,000 yards, Corley saw an opportunity while playing alongside NFL players Jerreth Sterns, Daewood Davis, and Mitchell Tinsley, Corley finished with 691 yards on 73 receptions.

During his 4-year career, Corley made the most of his opportunities against Power 5 schools. He totaled 88 yards and a touchdown against Ohio State, 12 receptions 93 yards, and a touchdown against Auburn, and 70+ yards twice against Indiana.

After gaining nearly 40lbs of mass since walking onto the WKU campus, Corley has become a YAC monster, finishing with 8.6 YAC/reception in 2023. Over the last three seasons, he has amassed 2,056 total yards after catch.

Fantasy Outlook:
Reader discretion is advised…. Watching Malachi Corley leaves me with just a few names to compare him to, Golden Tate, Curtis Samuel, and Tyreek Hill… Hill is the most dynamic player in football for obvious reasons, his lower body strength, durability, and overall speed are second to none, but one thing that has always been an awe to me, is his lower body elasticity, it’s almost as if he has rubber for tendons. Those are a few things I see when watching Corley, who is projecting to be 15lbs heavier when he enters the NFL.

Likely outcomes for him range from a Bo Melton-like situation, being cut in fall camp, up to a Tyreek Hill-lite. My expectation of Malachi Corley is a slot-dominant accelerator that can elevate an offense on day one, similar to what Curtis Samuel did during his second season in Carolina.

Cody Carpentier