Sam Cunningham (2001) - USC Athletics Hall of Fame

Sam Cunningham

Induction:
2001
Class:
1972

Sam Cunningham not only was one of the finest fullbacks in USC history, but he had a profound effect on college football. His 135-yard, 2-touchdown performance in a Trojan victory at Alabama in 1970 helped convince Bear Bryant to integrate Southern football. He was known as “Sam Bam” because of his famous goal line dives for touchdowns (he leaped for 4 short TDs to win Player of the Game honors in the 1973 Rose Bowl and later was inducted into the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame in 1992). He won All-American first team honors on USC’s 1972 national championship team, which he co-captained (he was Troy’s Back of the Year that season). A 3-year letterman (1970-72), he had 1,579 career rushing yards. He was inducted into the National Football Foundation College Football Hall of Fame in 2010. He was the 11th pick of the 1973 NFL draft by the New England Patriots and played there for 9 seasons, running for 5,453 yards and 43 TDs (he is in the Patriots Hall of Fame). His younger brother, Randall, became a star quarterback in the NFL. Sam then owned a landscaping business. He died on Sept. 7, 2021, at age 71.