College: Southwest Baptist University

Major: Undecided

Nicknamed for his “snake-like” smooth charisma, Bruce Malone claims he is finally ready to shed the skin of his KHS persona. For the majority of his time at Kirkwood, Malone has been dubbed “Big Slitha” by his friends and classmates. Though this may seem like a silly nickname to most, Malone claims it to be more of a defining trait throughout his high school career. 

“My best friend, Jaiden Sloan, gave it to me during football season,” Malone said. “[The idea] was that I was really smooth, kind of like a snake, after that it just kinda stuck, [now] everyone calls me it.”

Though many don’t know the true meaning behind the name, Malone said most KHS students use the name blindly. While the nickname caught on pretty quickly with his peers, Malone said he would prefer that less people used it.

“The worst thing is when people don’t know how to actually pronounce it,” Malone said. “If you can’t say ‘Slitha’ not ‘Slither’, don’t even bother. Same goes for when a teacher, or someone I don’t know, tries to say it.” 

Despite this, Malone said he is happy that he was able to have a memorable nickname throughout high school. Teddy Clanton, sophomore and Malone’s co-star on KHTV news, said using the name Big Slitha helped him feel closer to Malone.

“It’s fun when someone has a [nickname],” Clanton said. “You quickly feel closer to them because of it, which is nice.” 

Clanton said working with Malone has been a fun experience, and he’s excited to see what he’ll do in college. Malone is committed to play D2 football at Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar, MO. He said he is unsure whether or not his nickname will continue when he starts at SBU.

“I liked having my own thing at KHS, but I don’t know if I’ll have people at my new school use it,” Malone said. “I think it’d be better if I found my new thing there.”