LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Coming into the game against Boston College, a big question for the Louisville Cardinals was who would start at quarterback?
Malik Cunningham injured his ankle in the final play against Florida State.
Jawon Pass didn’t even play in that game against the Seminoles with a foot injury and true freshman Evan Conley is just that – a true freshman.
So Cards fans were waiting eagerly as the names were announced in Cardinal Stadium and then, it was announced – Micale Cunningham and the mystery thickened.
Many were asking, who is Micale?
Micale is Malik and under his new name for us, traditional for him, he played great. He connected on 13 of 18 pass attempts for 288 yards and a touchdown. Micale also ran in a score as well.
After the game, the name change became clearer.
"Micale is my first name but people can't pronounce it so I go by my middle name, which is 'Malik.' Like every time I go to class, they call me, 'Michele' or 'Michael' so I was like y'all just call me 'Malik.' And I thought about it, and I talked to a reporter yesterday and she asked me about it and I was like if y'all can pronounce it, I'm fine with it. That's my name," he said.
Now while Cunningham played great in the win over Boston College, he didn't take a single snap in the final game-winning drive.
Coach Scott Satterfield said afterwards that it wasn't anything to do with Micale's peformance -- he simply wasn't available.
"I think he tweaked -- I don't know if it was the same leg or not, it was a lower leg injury. They pretty much tell me he can go or he can't go. I don't ask a lot of questions. I just tell who's ready -- who's available. It's Evan? Okay, you're going! And Evan was out. I don't think Malik was ready at the end. I think it was Evan and that's why he was out there on the last drive."
►Make it easy to keep up-to-date with more stories like this. Download the WHAS11 News app now. For Apple or Android users.
Have a news tip? Email assign@whas11.com, visit our Facebook page or Twitter feed.
►Contact sports reporter Whitney Harding at wharding@whas11.com. Follow her on Twitter (@WHAS11Whitney)and Facebook.