The body mannerisms and throwing mechanics look almost identical. If the quarterback changed his jersey from No. 12 to No. 3, you’d swear it was former Gophers quarterback Bryan Cupito making the pass.

“Like father, like son, I guess,” said Carter Cupito with a chuckle. “If it appears to be similar to his [form], that’s good.”

Indeed it is.

His dad finished his football career as the all-time leading passer in Gophers history (later overtaken by Adam Weber and Tanner Morgan).

Carter’s career is still in its infancy but progressing at a rapid rate.

Only an eighth-grader, he is starting quarterback for the SMB varsity team (a co-op program involving St. Paul Academy, Minnehaha Academy, Blake and Hope Academy).

He doesn’t play like a 14-year-old middle-schooler.

Carter has completed 59% of his pass attempts for 1,428 yards (204 average per game) with 11 touchdowns and five interceptions. SMB has a 5-2 record.

In the first quarter of Friday’s win over St. Anthony, Cupito dropped back to pass and faced immediate pressure, forcing him to flee the pocket. Scrambling to his right with two defenders in pursuit, he kept his eyes downfield and fired a laser to his receiver running across the field for a 25-yard completion.

“He’s got more talent than I had [at that age] for sure,” Bryan said. “And mentally he’s way above where I was at this point.”

It’s uncommon to see eighth-graders play varsity football for obvious reasons, especially at the Class 4A level. The difference in size, strength, speed and mental processing between an 18-year-old and a 14-year-old is a gap that few teenagers are equipped to handle.

To make that leap at quarterback is even more rare.

The elder Cupito, who serves as SMB’s offensive coordinator, understands those challenges as well as anyone. His son is 5-11 and 150 pounds. Carter is tough, talented and extremely competitive, but the size disparity was an initial concern.

“I knew he could throw the ball,” Bryan said. “It was just a matter of, physically, can he hold up?”

Gophers fans remember Bryan as a three-year starting quarterback (2004-2006) paired with the dynamic running back duo of Laurence Maroney and Marion Barber III. The greatness of their rushing attack obscured the fact that Cupito passed for 7,446 yards and 55 touchdowns in his career — both marks good for No. 3 all-time in program history.

He remained in the Twin Cities after graduation, embarking on a professional career as a manager in pharmaceuticals while raising four children with his wife, Carly.

He began coaching football and basketball in the Minneapolis Phelps Falcons program when Carter was in third grade. Carter has played only quarterback since putting on pads.

“He’s not tackling anyone,” Bryan said, laughing.

Competing against older kids is not a new experience. Carter played up two grade levels in basketball and one grade level in football throughout childhood.

He played on Hopkins High’s freshman football team last season as a seventh-grader. He transferred after the semester and played on Minnehaha Academy’s varsity basketball team.

SMB had an opening at quarterback this season. The answer came easily during summer workouts.

Said SMB head coach Hugh Brown: “The questions were really, ‘Can we protect him well enough? Is he big enough to take some of those hits that he hadn’t seen before?’ When you watch him compete, he’s spreading the ball around and giving us a chance to be successful.”

Carter already knew the offensive scheme, having run its base concepts since third grade with his dad as coach. He has adapted to the speed of the game by trusting himself to let it rip when he sees a receiver breaking open.

“It moves at a much faster pace than playing youth football,” he said. “It’s not where you can just drop back and run around trying to make a play. You really have to know where the blitz is coming from and read the defense.”

Quarterback training has become a booming industry for youth players seeking specialized instruction. Carter shares a home with his quarterback coach.

Father and son work on passing and mechanics every Sunday, along with daily drills at practice. Bryan emphasizes proper footwork.

“Feet, feet, feet,” he said. “There are a million ways to throw the ball, but if your feet are all messed up — unless you’re a freak athlete or can throw the ball like Aaron Rodgers — you’ve got to have your feet underneath you.”

Pocket awareness is another necessary trait, knowing when to hang tight for an extra beat to let the play develop and when to bail to avoid a sack. The instinct for a youngster when facing older, stronger kids is to run for dear life.

“During fall camp, I wanted to run around, and my dad was like, ‘You cannot do that,’” Carter said, laughing. “I really had to get used to staying in the pocket, trusting my line. They’ve been doing great.”

His poise under pressure stands out as much as his talent as a passer. Carter is willing to hang in the pocket to let his receivers get open. His dad does encourage discretion.

Studying video of Holy Angels before their matchup, Bryan kept noticing 6-4, 230-pound defensive lineman Daniel Devine, a North Dakota State commit. He joked to Carter, “If you see that kid coming, go down.”

“He wasn’t scared,” Bryan said. “I mean, I was scared for him.”

Devine sacked him twice and intercepted a pass in the Holy Angels win, but Carter finished with 258 yards passing and a touchdown.

He earned praise and a pep talk afterward from someone who wore that same uniform and played that same position.

“I left that stadium saying, ‘For an eighth-grader, he looks so poised,’” said Jalen Suggs, the former Minnehaha Academy two-sport star who attended that game in September before heading to NBA training camp with the Orlando Magic.

Suggs’ message to Carter: Be assertive with your voice as a leader.

“It’s part of the job description, being the quarterback and point guard,” Suggs told the Minnesota Star Tribune in a phone call. “That’s the thing we talked about is to continue to find your voice, continue to lift guys up.”

Suggs, who led SMB to a state championship in football and had major-college Division I offers as a quarterback, was impressed by Carter’s control of the offense.

“He was doing everything he was supposed to,” Suggs said. “Putting the ball on the money, getting the ball out quick, wasn’t taking too many sacks. He kept the offense moving. I thought he looked amazing.”

The age gap has not created any awkwardness with older teammates. Upperclassmen include Carter in post-practice dinner outings and bring him along to watch other varsity competitions.

“He fits in with us,” senior receiver Jonah Schimelpfenig said. “He’s really mature for his age.”

That shows on the football field. Watch him rifle passes across the field and it’s easy to forget that SMB’s quarterback remains a year away from attending high school.

...

FOOTBALL ACROSS MINNESOTA

Game balls

Jaxon Mitchell: The Mahtomedi sophomore helped his team remain undefeated with two splash plays — a 70-yard touchdown catch and a 93-yard kickoff return for a touchdown — in a win over Cretin-Derham Hall.

Chase Bjorgaard: The Edina senior rushed for 187 yards and three touchdowns on 42 carries to lead the Hornets to an upset of Minnetonka.

Joey Gendreau: St. John’s tight end caught four touchdown passes in the first half and finished with 115 yards receiving on six catches in a win over Macalester.

Social shoutouts

The best things we saw on social media this week:

Hornets Hail Mary: Mason West to Sammy Stephenson for a “half-court shot” as the first half expired. The touchdown gave Edina the lead and the Hornets pulled off the upset at Minnetonka last Friday night.

Byron’s big play: Byron beat Stewartville on Friday night in a great showdown that included this final-minute magic.

Cloquet’s kick: Great sideline video here of a game-winning field goal with seconds remaining.

He said what?!

“When you have a perception of a player in your head, you expect that person to be that way all the time. We live in that world, right? Spider-Man is going to come save the day. Batman is going to come save the day. That’s America. We live in a comic book world at times where good always wins out, and we’re looking for that play to be made and that superhero to come in there.”

– Gophers coach P.J. Fleck on two young players — quarterback Drake Lindsey and safety Koi Perich — making critical plays in the fourth quarter to save the team from a bad loss against Purdue.

Numbers to know

0: Points allowed by Monticello in the final three quarters in a win over Elk River, which entered the game averaging 45 points per game.

57: Points scored by St. Thomas in a win over Davidson, the Tommies’ first 50-point scoring outburst since 2021.

17: Total points allowed by St. John’s in five games, all coming in a loss to Bethel. The other four games have been shutouts.

Grab your popcorn

Mahtomedi at St. Thomas Academy, 6 p.m. Wednesday. This is a battle of undefeated teams in Class 5A. St. Thomas Academy is ranked No. 1 in the state. Mahtomedi lost to the Cadets 52-7 last season, but these Zephyrs are playing with a ton of confidence in a bounce-back season.

A FAM final word

“Decision.”

As in, Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell has a decision to make at quarterback: J.J. McCarthy or Carson Wentz?

Health will help guide that decision in determining which quarterback will start against the Eagles on Sunday. McCarthy is back at practice after suffering an ankle injury in Week 2. Wentz is dealing with a shoulder injury. O’Connell said he wants to evaluate both in practice before announcing his decision.

. . .

Thank you for reading Football Across Minnesota (FAM), my weekly column that tours football topics in our state from preps to pros. FAM will publish midday on Tuesdays. I appreciate feedback, so please reach out anytime. — Chip (email: anthony.scoggins@startribune.com; on X: @chipscoggins)