Two weeks after his 21st birthday, Malik McDowell bought a Yamaha 4-wheeler to cruise around his hometown.

At 6-foot-6 and almost 300 pounds, the Detroit native had grown famous as a football player, first in high school and then at Michigan State. By July 2017, he’d signed his first pro contract, a $6.9 million deal with the Seattle Seahawks, which included a $3.2 million signing bonus.

But the pro football career he’d dreamed of since childhood all but disappeared when he totaled the 4-wheeler in a wreck that remains a mystery more than two years later. The crash injured his head, but others worry it also altered his personality.

Since the crash, McDowell, 23, has logged four arrests, three involving alcohol and a fourth where he offered a bizarre explanation for possessing a stolen truck.

One arrest went viral online when video showed McDowell scuffling with a Lathrup Village police officer at a gas station. Another video shows him cursing at a police officer and repeatedly using the N-word. In another one, he appears to blame his Michigan State coaches for his lower-than-expected draft position.

“He’s not the same person since the accident of that 4-wheeler,” said Reggie Wynns, owner of the Southfield-based development camp, Rising Stars Academy, who helped McDowell and hundreds of other local football players navigate the college recruiting process. “It could be CTE issues, it could be concussion. We don’t know. He was not a troublemaker, not a troublemaker at all.”

CTE is chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a brain condition associated with repeated blows to the head which can cause problems with thinking and memory as well as personality and behavior changes, including aggression and depression. The condition generally is diagnosed postmortem.

At a court hearing in Oakland County on Wednesday, McDowell's defense lawyer, Mitchell Ribitwer, asked the court to delay his case because McDowell is undergoing some medical evaluations "which may be relevant to the resolution of this matter."

"He's encountered some difficulties in his recovery and we're working on a plan that will help him get back on track," Ribitwer told the Free Press.

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Watching Malik McDowell tussle with police is a gut punch. He was a star

No official accounting of the ATV crash has ever been made public.

A Free Press search of state crash reports from the time found no record that McDowell ever filed one. Court records related to it have been sealed or redacted. A concussion expert, who McDowell said has cleared him to play, declined to comment citing medical privacy laws.

McDowell himself has never discussed it publicly, and with good reason.

His contract with the Seahawks included a clause which stated he would not “engage in any activity other than football which may involve a significant risk of personal injury.”

The Seahawks say McDowell is too injured to play football. They’ve sued him to claw back the signing bonus they paid him before he ever reported to training camp.

McDowell tweeted last month that he was cleared to play "by one of the best neurologist in the world," but his football career appears to be on hold — at best — while he works through mounting legal troubles.

Prep phenom

McDowell first gained attention while playing for Loyola High School, a small all-boys Catholic school on Detroit's west side.

As a 15-year-old sophomore in 2011, McDowell was 6-5 and weighed 265 pounds. He played on the offensive and defensive lines and dominated smaller players.

After his junior season, McDowell transferred to Southfield High School, a bigger program with a higher profile. He became strictly a defensive player and continued to dominate.

"For someone his size, he just had some natural gifts that you don't see in every player," said Southfield football coach Tim Conley. "His footwork and his speed for his size was really good. He had a really good work ethic in the weight room. He's just a really big, strong kid now."

Wynns remembers a 2013 game when Southfield's opponent, Oxford, tried to score on a fourth-and-1 play at the goal line.

"Malik jumped over the offensive lineman and made the tackle, stopping those guys on fourth-and-1," Wynns said. "He just jumped right over a guy. He just did that."

McDowell's physique and his play made him a 5-star recruit. He attracted a who's who of college football coaches, with coaches such as Nick Saban, Urban Meyer and Jimbo Fisher pursuing him. He visited Michigan State, Ohio State, Florida State, Florida and Alabama as part of his recruiting process before announcing in February 2014 that he'd chosen MSU.

But when signing day came, McDowell couldn't sign the paperwork, because his mother, Joya Crowe, wouldn't agree.

She had custody of her son and said she didn't want him to attend Michigan State. She told the Free Press at the time that she'd had a bad experience with the school.

"It was something at my end," she said. "I don't want to go into specifics."

MSU coaches were left wondering if he would truly sign. On April 1, 2014, they got their answer. Fifteen minutes before the deadline, McDowell faxed in a signed letter of intent ending what he called "the most stressful three months of my life."

"The recruiting process was a little long. I think there was a lot of hands in his recruiting process," Pat Narduzzi, the former Michigan State defensive coordinator who is now head coach at Pittsburgh, said during ACC media day earlier this month. “What I remember about Malik McDowell was a big, 6-foot-6, 300-pound athlete that was engaged."

College career

McDowell played in all 13 games his freshman year and was a starter by season's end. He logged 15 tackles, including 4.5 for loss. He was named a freshman All-American by the Football Writers Association.

His sophomore year proved even better, when he logged 41 tackles, including 13 for loss and 4.5 sacks. He was named second-team All-Big Ten by coaches and the media and his NFL draft stock soared.

"I remember watching his sophomore tape thinking, he's going to be one of the top talents in that draft," said Dane Brugler, a draft analyst with The Athletic.

McDowell had to play at least one more season before he was eligible to turn pro, but his junior season turned sour. The Spartans fell to 3-9 — the worst season in head coach Mark Dantonio's tenure — and McDowell's tackle total fell to 34 as he missed the final three games of the season with an ankle injury.

NFL Network analyst Mike Mayock at the time called McDowell "gifted genetically" but said he "runs hot and cold." McDowell looked like a top-15 draft pick in games against Notre Dame and Northwestern, Mayock said.

"If you watched him against Michigan, he looked like a fourth-round pick," Mayock said. "So I've had an awful lot of coaches say, ‘If we can just unlock the potential in this kid, we'll have something special.'"

Brugler said McDowell seemed less focused on football.

"It was like he took his foot off the pedal," Brugler said. "He just wasn't playing at the same level as he was before. The discipline wasn't there."

Brugler said McDowell's draft stock dropped after the season and a poor round of interviews with teams at the NFL combine diminished his standing even more. He once had the potential to be a top-five pick, but by the time the 2017 NFL draft arrived, he fell into the second round.

On April 28, 2017, the Seahawks drafted him with the 35th overall pick and questions about his commitment to the game came quickly.

"With a talent like that, you should not be a second-round draft pick. You should be a top-10 pick," ESPN analyst Mel Kiper Jr. said. "He was a classic underachiever from midway through on to the end of the season."

Pro contract

McDowell's four-year contract with the Seahawks called for him to earn an initial salary of $465,000 for the 2017 season with annual increases that rose to $1.4 million for the 2020 season.

The $3.2 million signing bonus was to be paid in four installments in 2017. The first $1.6 million was to be paid by June 2. The next $800,000 was due by July 14. Payments of $500,000 and $300,000 were due to McDowell by Sept. 15 and Oct. 16, respectively, according to his contract.

The contract also included the provision that allowed the club to preclude McDowell from engaging in activities that pose a high risk of injury.

"Player represents that he has special, exceptional and unique knowledge, skill, ability and experience as a football player, the cost of which cannot be estimated with any certainty and cannot be fairly or adequately compensated by damages," the contract reads.

Court records show the team paid McDowell $1.6 million by June 2, making him a millionaire before his 21st birthday, which came June 20.

Buying an ATV

On July 7, 2017, McDowell bought a 2017 Yamaha 4-wheel ATV from Rosenau Powersports on Ford Road in Dearborn Heights.

The blue and white machine weighed 381 pounds and was equipped with a 449 cubic-centimeter motor that delivered 40.2 horsepower, according to title records obtained by the Free Press. The purchase price was not disclosed, but similar models sell for about $9,000 before taxes and title costs.

The Michigan State University Federal Credit Union was listed as a secured party on the vehicle title, which included a typed notice: "This vehicle was not manufactured for use on public streets, roads or highways. Such use is prohibited by law."

Riding ATVs on Detroit streets has been a growing pastime for young people for years and injuries have risen. Detroit Police don't condone it, but they typically don't chase riders on the bikes either, because of the dangers of crashes.

It's unclear where McDowell crashed the machine, but on the title for the Yamaha, he listed his address as his father's home on Wykes Street on Detroit's west side.

On July 13, six days after the purchase, an insurance company listed the ATV as a total loss, according to a title history obtained by Carfax. The vehicle was later auctioned and photos of it on the Copart Auto Auction website show damage throughout the vehicle.

A front plastic piece similar to a hood is missing. A plastic wing-like piece over the left rear wheel is broken off. The back of the seat is torn. A portion of the frame appears split and the left front wheel is turned out about 40 degrees.

On July 17, McDowell tweeted: "I just want to thank the lord I'm still here". The post was followed by an emoji of two hands praying.

On July 30, McDowell sounded more hopeful, tweeting: "I appreciate all the concern regarding my health. I just want to clear the air. I'm doing well and expect to join my teammates in Seattle in the next few days. My injury is not life or career threatening as some have speculated."

He went on to thank the team, his doctors and his family, adding: "You will see me back on the field in the near future."

The team was less optimistic. On Aug. 7, Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll said at a news conference that McDowell "had a serious accident.”

“He had multiple injuries, had an injury to his head," Carroll said. "It’s going to be quite awhile and we’re going to have to wait it out.”

McDowell was ruled out for the 2017 season and his legal troubles soon began.

Drunk at 106 mph

On Sept. 22, 2017, about two months after the ATV crash, Michigan State Police stopped McDowell at 4:30 a.m. on eastbound I-696 near Campbell-Hilton in Royal Oak. He was alone in a 2016 GMC Terrain, which he later said belonged to his little sister.

When Trooper Bronse Gavin asked McDowell how fast he'd thought he'd been driving, McDowell said he thought about 75 mph. Gavin wrote in his report that he'd clocked the SUV at 106 mph.

"Driving 106, that's too fast young man," Gavin said as he handcuffed McDowell.

"I understand that," McDowell said. "But I cannot get a DUI. I'll lose my license, but I cannot go to jail."

Gavin didn't recognize McDowell as an athlete and even asked where he played high school and college ball.

When Gavin administered a roadside breath test, it showed McDowell's blood alcohol level at 0.12, legally intoxicated under Michigan law.

McDowell followed the instructions of the trooper, who placed McDowell in the front seat. With his hands cuffed behind him, McDowell had to cock his head to fit his 6-6 frame into the squad car.

An inward facing camera mounted on the dashboard captured the ride to the State Police post, and microphones picked up their conversation.

Blaming MSU

McDowell told Gavin that he plays for the Seahawks, was in town to visit his doctor and then discussed his time at MSU.

"In college I didn't get along with my coaches too good," McDowell said. "They didn't have too much good to say about me. My defensive line coach, me and him didn't get along too good. I ain't really like him. He ain't never had no NFL players. I just didn't like him."

Defensive line coach Ron Burton, McDowell's position coach at MSU, didn't respond to a request for comment left with a team spokesman.

Gavin told him he appears to have done OK despite those difficulties.

"I did. At the end of the day, I was supposed to be a first-round pick," McDowell said. "I was still drafted but I was supposed to be a top-10 pick."

Asked why he fell in the draft, McDowell said: "The agenda with my coaches and we ain't have the best of seasons last year."

McDowell said he had multiple scholarship offers but wanted to stay close to home because he was "scared to be homesick."

McDowell also told Gavin he should be playing on Sunday but he had to see a doctor

"I had a doctor's appointment about my head, if my head OK, I should be straight," McDowell said.

"What, because of concussion?" Gavin asked.

"Yeah," McDowell said. "I should be OK."

McDowell was charged with operating while intoxicated and later pleaded guilty.

Patrón and D'ussé

Almost three months after his Royal Oak arrest, McDowell was in trouble again, this time outside a nightclub in the Atlanta suburb of Chamblee.

Police reported that McDowell was involved in a shouting match at the SL Lounge about 2:20 a.m. He ordered a bottle of Patrón tequila and a bottle of D'ussé cognac, then poured both bottles into the bucket they were delivered in, according to police reports obtained by the Free Press.

When he was asked to leave, McDowell demanded a refund, shouted profanities, repeatedly used the N-word and began pounding his fist into his other hand in an aggressive manner.

"I bet I get out," McDowell shouted at police. "I got more money than y'all. Y'all ain't got enough money for me."

Later, McDowell shouted at a female officer: "B----, I got money, that's why I can talk sh--. You'll be a broke b---- the rest of your life."

One officer wrote in a report that McDowell smelled of alcohol.

"I believe McDowell felt entitled to do and act as he saw fit, with no regard to anyone else," the officer wrote. "His intoxication clearly skewed his judgement."

That arrest made news when video of it appeared online. It also complicated McDowell's Royal Oak drunken driving case, which was pending at the time.

'I need a supervisor'

On Feb.18, McDowell's troubles got worse, when he was arrested in Lathrup Village for drunken driving and assaulting a police officer, a felony which carries a maximum sentence of two years in prison.

Video of that arrest went viral and showed McDowell towering over a police officer who stopped him for speeding on Southfield near 12 Mile. McDowell pulls into a gas station and the officer tries to arrest him.

McDowell asks dozens of times for the officer's supervisor and tussles with the officer inside the store, knocking over racks of merchandise as they wrestle. The officer ultimately deploys his Taser to subdue McDowell. That case is pending in Oakland County Circuit Court.

Less than two months after that arrest, Southfield Police arrested him on another felony charge, this time possession of stolen property, a Ford F-150 pickup.

McDowell told officers he bought it from a man on the street for $5,000, later amending it to $3,000, but he couldn't provide the man's name or phone number.

The truck was brand new and still belonged to Ford Motor Co., according to court records. He was charged with receiving and concealing stolen property, a felony with a maximum sentence of five years in prison. That case also is pending in Oakland County Circuit Court.

Ribitwer, McDowell's attorney in both cases, declined to let his client discuss the cases.

"There's more than meets the eye in the criminal matters," Ribitwer said.

He said in the case of the truck, McDowell thought he was assuming a lease and would be taking over the payments on the vehicle after the initial payment.

"He's a nice young man and he may have been a little bit naive," Ribitwer said. "We're trying to negotiate a reasonable settlement with the prosecutor that's in everyone's best interests. He still hopes to pursue a career in professional football."

In addition to his legal troubles, McDowell must convince a team that he's physically able to play. The Seahawks waived him in July 2018.

Medical clearance

McDowell tweeted in June that he was cleared to play by Dr. Jeffrey Kutcher, who runs The Sports Neurology Clinic in Brighton and serves as director of the NBA's concussion program. Kutcher declined to comment because of medical privacy laws.

McDowell noted that the Seahawks' neurologist, Dr. Samuel Browd, who has not cleared him to play, primarily treats "patients are under the age of 2."

Recovering from a concussion and other head injuries to return to football is possible, said Dr. Matthew Lorincz, co-director of the Neurosport Concussion Care Program at the University of Michigan.

"One of the standard things that is done is people go through a return to play protocol or procedure," Lorincz said. "They gradually go through this and the idea is to kind of expose the body to increasing loads of activity, and start testing it."

Doctors watch for a return of concussion symptoms.

"If people can do a complete supervised exercise protocol without symptoms, that's a good sign that they are recovered and ready to return to participation," Lorincz said.

Lorincz said concussion patients often become emotional immediately after they're injured, showing elevated signs of aggression, sadness or humor.

"When people recover from concussion, personality and mood issues often arise," he said. "Sometimes, if someone has a personality issue that's kind of present prior to the concussion, it can get a little bit more pronounced during recovery from concussion. The same with some of your mood problems. If someone has a little anxiety, a little depression before the concussion, that can definitely get worse, during recovery from concussion."

Athletes can be vulnerable to those kinds of changes in part because the concussion often takes them away from their sport, Lorincz said.

"It can be more of a reactive kind of thing, where your view of the thing you want to do is now being taken away from you and that makes you feel depressed and sad and anxious," he said.

Lorincz said it's not surprising that two doctors could differ on McDowell's readiness to return to football.

"At this point, there's not kind of a standard way, just to decide if people are recovered from concussion," he said. "But I think we have a lot of experience and I think it takes the whole clinical picture together along with this exercise testing. I think we're very comfortable with when things line up, to say, 'OK, you're recovered.' "

Possible comeback?

McDowell's parents, Greg McDowell and Joya Crowe, accompanied their son to the court hearing this week in Oakland County but declined to comment on his situation.

Brugler, the draft analyst, said the chances of a comeback seem small at this point because of both the injuries and the legal troubles.

"It would be a long shot for a team to buy into him as, you know, a guy that could make a significant contribution on an NFL roster," Brugler said. "It's not like he's proved himself in the NFL. At this point, he's all unrealized potential."

Dantonio declined to comment on McDowell's troubles, other than to wish him the best. Current Spartan Raequan Williams, who played with McDowell on the defensive line, said his former teammate can be hard to read.

"I feel like he's a good guy and I don't know what's going on through his head," Williams said. "I honestly don't know what's up. It's definitely something internal. Malik is the kind of guy... he's to himself. It's hard to talk to somebody who's to themselves all the time. I just hope he's alright. I hope my guy is good."

Wynns, who runs Rising Stars, a training program for high school athletes and helped McDowell navigate the recruiting process, said McDowell needs help to turn himself around.

"I just think that we need to figure out a way to get some treatment and get something to happen," Wynns said. "Because if we don't know we're going to lose him. I'm worried. I'm really worried about him."

Free Press staff writer Chris Solari and Wayne E McGahee III of the Tallahassee Democrat contributed to this report. Contact John Wisely: 313-222-6825 or jwisely@freepress.com. On Twitter @jwisely