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Sophie Cunningham has and always will be a Midwestern girl whose roots are deeply embedded in Missouri. Growing up in Columbia, she was raised on two certainties: sports and being a Tiger.
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Cunningham was already a multisport athlete growing up, excelling in basketball, volleyball, track and field, taekwondo, and even football. In high school, she was well on her way to continuing the family legacy and her mind was already set on donning the black-and-gold. However, she revealed that Kansas, Missouri’s arch-rivals, actually recruited her first.
Heart and home in Missouri
Cunningham was already making waves as one of the most talented athletes from Columbus thanks to her career at Rock Bridge High School. She was ranked in the top 30 of her recruiting class and made waves as the first female to score points for her high school football team.
Her reputation was already growing, prompting the Jayhawks to try to lure Soph away earlier than any other school, fully aware of her family’s legacy against their rivals. However, the timing or any other sweetener didn’t matter because her choice had already been made the day she was born.
“It was a family legacy. The Black and Gold run deep in our family, and I actually committed out of the eighth grade,” she said. “The funny thing is my first offer was actually from Kansas.”
“I was literally in seventh grade, and they offered me a full ride, and I walked out of that room, and I was like, ‘That was nice, but absolutely not,’ and we all started laughing because why would they even waste their time?” she added.
Despite Kansas actually getting to Cunningham a year earlier than Missouri, there was really no question about where she would go to college. Both her parents, as well as her uncle and grandfather, all played for Missouri.
She was always going to remain close and choose to continue her family legacy. Besides, Mizzou was only five minutes away from her home. But as much as her decision to go to Missouri looks like the easiest route on paper, it still didn’t mean that she was going to college with no expectations.
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Continuing her family legacy and more
Cunningham arrived at Missouri with enormous expectations, but she immediately erased all concerns by becoming the best player in the program her freshman year after averaging 14.0 points and 5.8 rebounds per game.
Her physical style and trademark confidence were already evident as she was integral in leading the Tigers to the NCAA Tournament in each of her four seasons. She eventually finished her collegiate career by becoming the program’s all-time leading scorer.
Cunningham’s stellar collegiate career arguably became a defining piece of her family’s legacy. Not only did she continue it, but she also helped create something bigger by becoming one of the most inspiring athletes to come out of Missouri.
Cunningham continues to create something bigger than herself and her family in the WNBA with the Indiana Fever, alongside the sport’s biggest star, Caitlin Clark. Not only has her talent attracted fans, but her loyalty and fighting spirit, which have existed since before college, have remained a huge part of her overall brand.
Related: Sophie Cunningham reveals her surprising 67-year-old dream guy: “If he was younger and not married”
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This story was originally published September 13, 2026 at 10:46 AM.