Everitt Cunningham

Photo by: Matthew A. Smith

Position:
DE
Ht./Wt.:
6-3 / 241
Class:
Junior
Hometown:
West Point, Miss.
Prev School:
East Mississippi CC

Honors

• 2019 AAC All-Academic Team

2020 (Senior)

• Member of the 8-3 Tigers who won the 2020 Montgomery Bowl
• Appeared in four games on the season
• Made one tackle against Cincinnati

2019 (Junior)

• Appeared in 13 of 14 games in his first year at Memphis after transferring from East Mississippi CC
• Finished with 24 tackles, including 16 solos
• Added four tackles for loss and three sacks
• Also had one PBU and three quarterback hurries
• Had eight multi-tackle games
• Had a season-high five tackles, all solos, at Temple
• Recorded his first Memphis sack in a win at South Alabama
• Added sacks against Tulane and USF in conference play
• His three sacks ranked fourth on the team behind Bryce Huff, Joseph Dorceus and Jonathan Wilson
• Member of the 2019 squad that finished 12-2 overall, won the American Athletic Conference Championship and made an appearance in the 84th Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic

2017-2018 (at East Mississippi CC)

• Played two seasons for head coach Buddy Stephens at East Mississippi Community College
• Helped lead the Lions to back-to-back National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) national titles, becoming only the second program to do so in NJCAA history
• East Mississippi posted an undefeated 12-0 record in 2018 and went 11-1 in 2017
• Also won consecutive Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges (MACJC) championships in 2017 and 2018
• In his two seasons with the Lions, registered 88 total tackles (65 solo), 28.5 TFL (144 yards), 16 sacks (116 yards) and three fumble recoveries
• Had his breakout year as a sophomore in 2018
• Member of the 2018 Lions defense that led NJCAA in scoring defense at 11.2 ppg
• Had 57 total hits (43 solo), 20.5 TFL (113 yards) and 13 sacks (94 yards)
• Ranked among nation’s leaders in TFL and sacks
• Logged a career-high eight total tackles in back-to-back wins over Northeast Mississippi and Copiah-Lincoln
• Had a career-best 4.5 TFL (23 yards) in win over Northeast Mississippi
• Recorded a career-high four sacks (28 yards) vs Copiah-Lincoln
• In the NJCAA national title game, had eight total tackles (6 solo), one TFL, one forced fumble and two fumble recoveries
• His first fumble recovery came off his forced fumble deep in Garden City Community College territory
• Scooped up the loose ball and returned it 11 yards for the Lions’ only TD of the game (East Mississippi won 10-9)
• Recovered another fumble later in the game that ended Garden City’s final scoring threat
• 2018 honors included: NJCAA national title game Most Valuable Player, NJCAA All-America second team, NJCAA All-Region 23, MACJC All-State/North Division first team and MACJC Defensive Player of the Week (twice)
• In his freshman year in 2017, collected 31 total tackles (22 solo), eight TFL (31 yards) and three sacks (22 yards)
• Had two tackles (1 solo) vs Arizona Western College in the NJCAA national title game.

Prior to Memphis/Personal

• Four-year varsity member at West Point High School
• Played for head coach Chris Chambless
• Saw action on the defensive line his first three seasons, and then split time on the defensive line and at tight end as a senior
• Helped lead the Green Wave to the 2016 Mississippi High School Activities Association (MHSAA) Class 5A state championship
• Caught the go-ahead TD in the third quarter
• Score came on a 44-yard pass
• West Point finished 2016 with a 14-1 overall record and a 7-1 mark in Region 1-5A play
• Named to the 2016 Mississippi Association of Coaches (MAC) Class 5A All-State first team
• Selected to play in the 2016 Bernard Blackwell North/South All-Star Game
• As a junior in 2015, helped lead the Green Wave to an 11-3 record
• West Point advanced to the MHSAA Class 5A state playoff semifinal round
• Helped the Green Wave to MHSAA state playoff appearances as a freshman and sophomore
• Son of Belinda Rice and Charles Cunningham