Bishop Amat’s McCutcheon Is Making a Name for Himself

Daylon McCutcheon has grown up with a last name easily recognized by football fans. But the name happens to come from a father he has never known.

Since he started playing football seven years ago, McCutcheon has frequently been asked if he is Lawrence McCutcheon’s son.

Lawrence was a third-round draft choice of the Rams in 1972 and spent eight seasons with the team before finishing his career with the Buffalo Bills in 1981. He ranks second on the Rams’ rushing list with 6,186 yards.

But when people ask Daylon about his father, the conversation is usually short.

“I tell them he’s my father,” he said. “And I can’t say much more than that because I really don’t know a whole lot more. I’ve seen him play a couple of times on film, but I don’t know him. I only know what I’ve heard.”

Daylon, 16, is being raised by his mother, Debbie Sterling, in Diamond Bar. Sterling ended a 13-year marriage to Leonard Sterling earlier this year. Daylon attended public schools until 1991, when he enrolled at La Puente Bishop Amat High, a Catholic school known for its powerful football teams.

Lawrence has been working as a scout for the Rams since he stopped playing football. He lives in Huntington Beach with his wife, Myna, and son, Marcus.

Although they live only an hour apart, Daylon said he has met his father only twice since he was a baby. Lawrence has never seen his oldest son play football.

“I really have not let any of this bother me too much,” said Daylon, a two-way starter last season as a sophomore and considered one of the Southland’s top players. “I don’t know my father. I would like to know more about him, but I look at him more as an older friend who I have a lot of catching up to do with.”

Daylon’s mother met Lawrence while they were attending Colorado State University. Lawrence was a star running back for Colorado State from 1968-71. Sterling said their relationship was not romantic in college but that of good friends.

Two years after Lawrence was drafted, Sterling graduated and moved to Los Angeles. She and Lawrence spent a lot of time together.

Their friendship eventually turned into a romantic relationship, though, and Sterling became pregnant in the spring of 1976. Daylon was born in December of that year.

She said Lawrence was at the peak of his professional career with the Rams when Daylon was born, was making a lot of money and receiving a great deal of publicity. Getting married and settling down was out of the question, she said.

“Lawrence just wasn’t ready for a family,” Sterling said. “He told me he would help me as much as he could and told me to ask for whatever I needed. There was never any animosity.”

The relationship became strained a year after Daylon was born, she said, when Lawrence was told by his attorney that he had to pay child support. Sterling said Lawrence had always been generous but that he did not like being told what to do.

Since then, Lawrence has cut nearly all of his ties with Sterling and Daylon.

“I have not been a part of Daylon’s life,” Lawrence said. “(But) I am aware of what he’s doing. I would not let it go untracked. I am aware of his accomplishments. Right now, though, I do not have much contact with him.”

Lawrence, 43, said he was uncomfortable talking about the subject and did not want to get into specifics. He said he spoke with Daylon a couple of months ago and that their relationship was in the molding stages.

Daylon said he first met his father when he was 10. His mother had taken him to Ram camp and Lawrence happened to be there. They talked for a few minutes.

Their other meeting occurred last December when Lawrence and a friend took Daylon to dinner.

“We mostly just talked about football,” Daylon said. “He asked me about my football team and stuff. When he left he said he wanted us to start talking more. I haven’t seen him since then.

“I don’t blame him for anything,” he said. “It’s cool with me for us to be friends.”

Sterling, 42, said she is often asked why she gave Daylon his father’s last name instead of hers. She said there was never any doubt about using the McCutcheon name. She gave Daylon the option of changing it when he got older but said he declined.

The questions about his father probably would have been few if Daylon had never played football. Although Sterling did not encourage her only son to take up the sport, she said she could not keep a ball out of his hands.

Although he wanted to attend nearby Rowland High, Sterling made her son attend private Bishop Amat, 20 minutes away, so he would receive better coaching.

“By the ninth grade, it had become obvious Daylon had some very special athletic skills,” said Sterling, who works as a substitute teacher. “I felt that he needed the competition and to be challenged.”

Mark Paredes, Bishop Amat’s coach, said he noticed Daylon when he saw him drop back as a quarterback and then rush for a touchdown as a freshman.

“The freshman coaches told me that they just kept the ball in his hands and he would score all the time,” Paredes said. “Now, I try to get him the ball as much as possible.”

Last season, Bishop Amat won a CIF Southern Section title and finished 15-0. Daylon, 5 feet 9 and 170 pounds, started at wide receiver and strong safety and also returned punts and kickoffs.

College recruiters have also noticed Daylon’s abilities. USC Coach John Robinson stopped by to meet him last spring.

But the increased attention has resulted in more inquiries about his father. Sterling said she has tried to protect her son as much as possible but realizes it will be tougher as he gets older.

“There’s certainly no embarrassment of being Lawrence McCutcheon’s son,” said Sterling, who also has a daughter, 11-year-old Lindsey Sterling. “But it just adds a lot of pressure on a kid. I don’t feel Daylon needs that kind of pressure.

“People also tend to get a very false impression because of the McCutcheon name,” she said. “They assume Lawrence has been in the back yard, teaching him how to play football all of these years. Of course, that couldn’t be further from the truth. Daylon has done everything on his own.”

There are similarities, however. Daylon strongly resembles Lawrence and Sterling said they share several mannerisms.

Daylon, though, said that is about as far as the comparisons go. He chose a different jersey number from the one his father wore and said he feels bad that Lawrence has never seen him play football. But he adds that it is hard to miss something he never had.

“Daylon has grown up fine and is a well-adjusted young man,” Sterling said. “Lawrence is the one I feel sorry for. He’s the one who has missed out.”