LOS ALAMITOS, Calif. — They say friendship is spending so much time together you start to look alike, walk alike and maybe even dress alike. 

For Los Alamitos High School juniors Malachi Nelson and Makai Lemon, all three ring true. It doesn't take more than a quick glance at the pair to figure out they've been friends for quite a while. 


What You Need To Know

  • Los Alamitos High School is one of the top public programs in the state of California
  • This year, the team is led once again by juniors Malachi Nelson and Makai Lemon
  • Both players have known each other since they were 8 years old and boast a special chemistry on field
  • They are now two of the top players in their class, committed to the University of Oklahoma

“First memory? Wow... we were about 7 years old when we started playing football together," Nelson said. 

"That was a really long time ago," Lemon echoed. "I first saw him the first day of practice, he was a little taller than everyone else."

It just so happened that one was a quarterback and the other a wide receiver — the perfect match if you ask Lemon. 

“I think he threw a deep pass to me and it was like perfect on the dot," Lemon said. "I thought, 'this kid is kinda good.'” 

From their Pop Warner days and on to the field at Los Alamitos, that chemistry has just continued to build. 

With the chemistry, their completions have also stacked up. 

“It’ll come to the point where you see us on the field and I’ll nod at him," Nelson explained. "I know what I want him to do and it’s one simple hand movement. We’re on the same page, just rocking and rolling.”

Together they've helped to set a high standard that's helped the Griffins to become one of Southern California's premier programs. 

They came to Los Al because they wanted to build something together. 

"Part of the reason I came here, and I could have gone to another high school, but I chose my local school just to kind of build something," Nelson said.

“We wanted to build our own legacy, bring up the school and show awareness that public schools can ball too," Lemon said. 

And while they may be the perfect pair, both are extremely adamant that on this field they are part of the team. 

“We don’t wanna grow away from the team and just be the duo that plays on the team," Nelson said. "They look to us and we try to do our best to keep the team at the forefront and go and win games."

From this team and on to college — where, in a move that's almost unheard of —the quarterback and his receiver committed to the same college, the University of Oklahoma. 

“We always dreamed about playing in high school and college and doing all this crazy stuff together, but I never thought it would really happen," Lemon said.

In this case, though, their dreams came true. 

Now, Lemon and Nelson's journey is just beginning. 

“Like a stepping stone since then, we kept building on it and it just so happens that we’re gonna get to attend the same college," Nelson said. "It's really cool."