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New Wharton coach thrives on pressure
By JOEL POILEY NEW TAMPA -- None of his Tampa Bay Storm teammates believed Melvin Cunningham that day in 1999 when he told them he'd be the football coach at Wharton High. "Ironically, I was living in Andover Place (on Cross Creek Boulevard) at the time and had attended some athletic events at Wharton. I was joking with some of the guys on the team and told them someday I'm going to coach there. They went 'Yeah, whatever, you're not going to coach there.' Lo and behold, four years later, I'm sitting here as the head coach at Wharton High School," Cunningham said. Fate played a hand. But so did the 29-year-old's desire to coach and remain in Tampa. After two years away from arena football with a foot injury, Cunningham returned to the Storm and was a key contributor last season as defensive back/receiver. Then he dislocated his right knee in a noncontact play in midseason. It took exhaustive rehab to walk normally again. "In a sense, that was God's way of letting me know that he has something else in store for me," said Cunningham, who lives in Westchase. That, plus his desire to keep his sons, 8 and 3, from moving, made Wharton an appealing possibility when Richard "Batman" Wood accepted a position in January to coach the defensive line with Frankfurt of NFL Europe. The popular Wood built the six-year program from a perennial loser into a Class 5A state finalist this past season when the Wildcats finished 13-2. Cunningham was doing something similar in West Virginia, his home state. Coaching in the Storm's off-season, Cunningham assumed the reins at Tug Valley High two years ago when the school had a four-year, 40-game losing streak. Thirty-seven of those losses were by more than 30 points. After a 1-9 season with only one loss by more than 10 points, Cunningham lifted the program to a 7-3 mark, with his quarterback leading the state in touchdown passes. The turnaround caught the eye of Wharton athletic director Lanness Robinson and principal George Gaffney, who chose Cunningham from about a dozen candidates. The new coach says he respects what Wood accomplished but wants to make his own mark. "He probably has a bigger foot than me anyway, so I'm not going to try to do that," Cunningham said, laughing. "But I want to etch my own footprints in the sand here at Wharton. But he obviously has been where I want to take this team. So I'm trying to take that next step. Then when it's all over, I can say thank you to him for laying the groundwork. "The thing that appeals to me is the pressure. They just got beat in the state final. I've always looked for pressure situations. Pressure can do two things: It can bust pipes and make diamonds. I try to make diamonds in my life." Cunningham also was impressed that administrators at Wharton are "trying to take this school to new heights, not only on the field but also inside the classroom. Not all of these athletes are going to play college football. So I wanted to find a place where I was comfortable as a teacher as well." Cunningham is certified as a special education teacher and also has an elementary education degree. Wharton administrators hope to give him a teaching spot. But mostly, Cunningham impressed principal Gaffney with his understanding of where the football program is and what's ahead. It didn't hurt that in his four years playing at Marshall University, the team appeared in four Division I-AA championship games, winning two. "He had some great ideas what he wants to see here, not only for the football team but academically for the school," Gaffney said. "He had some good ideas to get kids to come out. "In terms of football, he knows we're losing a great number of seniors and he understands that it's going to be a building year. But he did his homework and he knows there's some talent returning that he can have as a nucleus and build around."
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