A TIGHT BROTHERHOOD: Malique and Makai Bodden have spent a lifetime as Nantucket teammates

Brothers Malique, left, and Makai Bodden use their competitiveness with each other to their advantage on the Nantucket High School football team. Head coach Joe Perry says, “I think growing up in the same household has built their chemistry. they can almost anticipate what the other is going to do and it has left a good mark on the football field.” Ron Schloerb, Ron Schloerb/Cape Cod Times

Instead of playing with toys like most kids, two brothers sat in their backyard drawing up their own sports plays. Their love for sports grew as they watched older family members play throughout their childhood. When they reached the age of 5, they started playing team sports and never stopped. Now, Malique and Makai Bodden are teammates at Nantucket High School playing varsity basketball and football.

“My older cousin Raheem taught me how to play basketball because he loved it, so I just picked it up from him,” Malique said. “I started playing football because I would always go to my older brother Troy’s games at Nantucket and watch him play, which made me want to play as well. He would make me and Makai practice with him and then he would teach us how to play, and I just fell in love with football.” 

Malique is a senior and older than Makai, who is a junior. Playing with your sibling can be very competitive at times and as the little brother, Makai knows that firsthand. 

“I will call a huddle during football and Malique won't get the ball or I’ll throw a bad pass and he will say ‘You're not good’ and get down on me, but I know that he’s just doing that because he’s an older brother,” Makai said. “I have always thought I was better than him but it’s all respect for each other.”

Malique says he loves playing with his little brother because it is something they have done their entire lives.

“In football, he's the quarterback and I’m the receiver and he knows exactly where to throw it and I will go get it,” Malique said. “In basketball, we worked well together because we know how each other plays.” 

Nantucket varsity football head coach Joe Perry says that they have a tight brotherhood and it shows when they play on the field together. 

“They are both great individuals, well-mannered, outstanding athletes and fun to work with,” Perry said. “I think growing up in the same household has built their chemistry. They can almost anticipate what the other is going to do and it has left a good mark on the football field.”

In first grade, Makai met Justin Bloise at Nantucket Elementary School. Bloise also played sports and played against Makai competitively all through grade school. In the 7th grade they finally became teammates. Now they are teammates at Nantucket High for football and basketball. Makai said if it wasn’t for Bloise, he would not be as skilled as he is now because they always pushed each other to be better.

“Me and Makai have been playing sports together for a long time,” Bloise said. “Since we were little, it’s always been a competition, arguing as a joke. Our chemistry is so good, which makes us good at basketball and football. It's a big factor when you have a teammate that you have been playing with for so long and y’all have each other’s back.”

Kenard Liburd is a teammate of Malique’s on the Nantucket basketball and football team and says it is truly amazing playing with him.

“We have been playing together since grade school,” Liburd said. “It’s nice to be alongside him and see him get much better at his craft. He’s a good all-around person. He’s calm, humble, a very good leader and he pushes people to be better at what they do.”

Malique Bodden of Nantucket attempts to catch a pass form his brother Makai after a deflection by Bradley Alexis of Monomoy during Saturday’s game. Ron Schloerb, Ron Schloerb/Cape Cod Times

Being a senior, Malique has high hopes for college, which include playing sports. He plans to major in either communications or business and sports management.

“I’m hoping to play basketball at whatever college I’m going to,” Malique said. “So far I have been accepted into five schools but I’m waiting to hear from my top school choices in April. As of right now, I don’t know what I am going to do as far as what school I'm attending, but hopefully, I will be able to play sports at whatever school I go to.”

In addition to basketball and football, Malique played soccer up until fifth grade because their dad is Jamaican and that is his favorite sport. After fifth grade, he switched from soccer to lacrosse to play with his friends up until eighth grade. Of all the sports he has played, basketball is his favorite. He has big dreams for the future. 

“I'm hoping to make it to the NBA but if that doesn’t happen, I have a backup plan to become a chef because I love cooking,” Malique said. “I have a couple of other backup plans as well, but the main one is making it into the NBA.”

As for Makai, he also played soccer and lacrosse. His favorite sport was basketball as well, but he changed it to soccer as he got older and played on more teams. Although he never played soccer for Nantucket High because it was during football season, he currently plays for Liverpool FC International Academy. 

“I see myself playing at a high level for soccer because that’s the only exposure I get,” Makai said. “I’ve played in tournaments everywhere. I am thinking of going to a private school for soccer after graduating so I can get more recruitment. I have already started applying for post-graduate schools but I haven’t decided whether I want to play soccer or football yet.”

In addition to sports, Malique loves cooking and listening to music; Makai likes streaming video games with his friends on Twitch and recording videos of himself on YouTube.