His father was once “Football’s Ultimate Weapon” and his uncle was MVP of the 1973 Rose Bowl. Randall Cunningham II is 6-6, 185, runs a 4.6 40 and has Olympic-caliber talent in the high jump, setting a Nevada state record last spring with a leap of 7 feet, 3.25 inches.
Baylor coach Art Briles nicknamed him RCII after learning Robert Griffin III was one of his favorite players. The younger Cunningham looks and plays like a time capsule of his famous dad, ” target=”_blank”>who says his son is more athletic than he was. As a prep in Santa Barbara, the younger brother of Sam “Bam” Cunningham was 6-4, ran a 4.8 40 and high jumped 6-9. The son is taller and faster (si.com photo).
Now a senior in high school for the Bishop Gorman High Gaels in Las Vegas, Nevada, RCII is in his first year starting, taking over at quarterback after 4-year starter Anu Solomon graduated. Solomon, now at Arizona as a D-1 scholarship player, threw for over 10,000 yards and 138 tds at the school, leading the team to a 57-3 record and four state titles.
Last Saturday, Cunningham and his father took an unofficial visit to Oregon for the California game, and he’s tabbed the Ducks as his leader in the recruiting chase ahead of Briles and the Bears. In all he has about a dozen offers, including Arizona State, LSU and Syracuse.
The young man is still developing as a quarterback prospect but has stunning athletic ability. He has a vertical leap of 38 inches, fast and calm in the pocket. Bishop Gorman coach Todd Sanchez told Mitch Stephens of Maxpreps, “There’s not many people on the planet — let alone in high school — who are that fast and that explosive, Run a 4.6 40 and high jump 7-3. On top of all that he’s such a smart kid and hard worker. He’ll be a great football player and he’s a great kid.”
Last season he played sparingly but showed promise, completing 21 of 32 passes for 298 yards and two touchdowns and four interceptions. He also rushed 42 times for a net 483 yards and seven tds.
His father is his offensive coordinator at Gorman. In 16 years in the NFL RC Senior rushed 4,928 yards and threw for nearly 30,000. For the past eight years he’s been the founding pastor of Remnant Ministries Church in Las Vegas, which now has 1200 members. For both father and son, devout faith guides their choices. RCII is also a serious student with a 3.3 G.P.A., earning him an offer from Yale and interest from Duke.
He’s way better than I was when I was a kid,” Cunningham Sr. said in an interview with Michael Roseberg of si.com before his son’s season-opening game. “He’s faster than I was, he’s bigger than I was, he’s smarter, he has more knowledge of the game than most people could even realize because I taught him so much and he’s been around the NFL.
“He’s well advanced, and a lot of people would not know that about him.”
“He’s compared to me, but he takes the pressure and is like ‘that’s my dad and I’m honored to have a dad who was successful that people can compare to me.’” Cunningham Sr. said. “He looks at me and he respects what I say to him. Even in the times when he might not want to hear what I have to say, when it’s kind of going against the grain, he still receives.”
In his first game this year the Gaels took on Arizona powerhouse Mountain Pointe, the school of elite receiver Jalen Brown, a Duck target. Cunningham’s line was a little overmatched in the game and they wound up losing 28-21. He completed 5 of 12 passes for 83 yards, running for 103.
They’re 4-0 since. The Gaels play a national schedule against other elite high schools, and RCII gets better every game. Several of their games are nationally televised. Two weeks ago against Bergen Catholic of New Jersey he tossed a 3-yard touchdown pass with a minute to play for a 20-17 victory. On September 6th he led a double overtime win over Santa Margarita of California, 34-31. In the first half he completed 9-11 passes for 163 yards, including a 54-yarder to receiver Obim Okeke.
A week later Bishop Gorman played Blake Stanton and Hroniss Grasu’s old school, Crespi High of Los Angeles. A bad snap resulted in an early safety but they kept their poise, roaring back for 42 unanswered points in a 42-9 victory.
Against Servite in game two, the senior quarterback was 13-20 passing for 200 yards, ran 10 times for 116 and a td as BG cruised to a 41-17 win.
“I used to feel pressure about being as good as my dad, but not any more,” Randall Jr. said. “He tells me, ‘Don’t try to be like me. Be better than me.’ ”
The superb genes don’t stop with his famous father. His mother was a former professional ballet dancer.
Gaels coach Sanchez praises his work ethic and humility, noting how well he handles the pressure of leading an elite program with so much individual attention and expectation.
“He’s very calm,” he said. “He doesn’t get rattled and is very unassuming.”
The Ducks already have one quarterback in the 2014 class, Morgan Mahalak of Marin Catholic High in Kentfield, Washington. Mahalak is more finished as a passer. Cunningham has the freakish athletic ability and upside. Oregon has to consider taking two this year, with Dustin Haines graduating and Marcus Mariota projected as a potential first round draft pick if he leaves early for the NFL. A fast athlete with a huge upside is always a welcome addition. Competition is good, and the best athletes embrace it.
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