Malcom Moore is a survivor.
Three years ago he open-enrolled as a freshman at Minnetonka, someone seen as a good kid who had made some mistakes and needed better direction.
No more stealing for food or scrapping at the park or sprinting down alleys to avoid trouble, as he did growing up in Minneapolis.
He commuted back and forth from south Minneapolis that first year. One February afternoon he learned that his cousin had been shot at his father's house.
"I definitely would have been in the room if I wasn't out here," said Moore, a wide receiver on the Skippers football team.
"Out here" has brought family stability, first staying in Hopkins with Minnetonka freshman basketball coach Rob Ware. This year, as a senior, he's lived in Excelsior with football teammate George Buchner, developing a friendship that has tightened into brotherly bonds.
Change didn't come easily at the beginning. But in both living situations, and with the aid of a Minnetonka non- profit, Moore's basic needs were fulfilled.
Life on the football field was good, too, until this year. A dynamic athlete who has also played quarterback and safety, Moore sat out all but 24 minutes of the regular season after breaking a bone in his foot.