- June 18, 2026
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Aaron McRae could never get too comfortable on the couch. More often than not, his presence was requested outside the house not long after he sat down.
That’s because his son, Amarian McRae, needed someone to throw him the football. It started with one request — before he set foot on a football field — and more followed.
“We always talk about this video. We have the footage of it,” said Aaron McRae. “One day, he came up to me with the football in his hands. He had his little gloves on, his little cleats … He said, ‘Come on daddy, let’s go train.’”
Father and son became mentor and mentee. The former passed down what knowledge he could while the latter absorbed it, learning the game throughout his childhood.
Amarian McRae, now with Cardinal Mooney football, has run with the teachings of his built-in training partner.
The rising sophomore defensive back/wide receiver’s future has already begun to take shape. As of June 15, he’s collected four offers from NCAA Division 1/FBS programs in this month alone — UCLA, Notre Dame, Georgia and Florida.
Toledo, Maryland, North Carolina, East Carolina, Louisville and Wake Forest have also extended offers. His list is now 10 deep, and with three more years remaining in his high school career to impress even more college coaches around the country.
“One of the things I was blessed with is size, and then the ability to use my size — to play within my frame,” McRae said. “I’m very athletic. There’s a lot of things I can do that most people can’t do.”
Year one with the Cougars was wildly successful. It ended on the highest note of all, resulting in a championship ring on McRae’s finger.
Cardinal Mooney won the FHSAA Class 2A state title while the 6-foot-1, 175-pound talent contributed 35 tackles, 19 pass breakups and two interceptions. The defensive unit allowed just over 13 points per game with him in the fold.
When he wasn’t hunting pass-catchers, he looked to the secondary’s elder statesmen for guidance. Safety Jayden Burnett, safety/wide receiver Laron Foye and wide receiver/cornerback Rymen Mosley were the first names that came to his mind as since-graduated role models.
“It was a great introduction… to really feel what it’s like to be part of a winning team (and) to know what it takes from everybody,” McRae said. “They left an imprint on me. Now, I’m trying to bring our guys up to that standard, and I’m trying to do some of the things they taught me.”
Spring football has been over since May 21. For the last few weeks, McRae has spent his summer traveling to college camps, taking his skills on tour.
Hundreds of high school athletes flock to these camps looking to put their names on the map. They hope to impress college coaches enough to earn an offer, but only a select few actually do.
Camps at Florida, Georgia and Notre Dame are among the largest and most in-demand. McRae competed at all of them on June 1, 4 and 5, respectively.
After each and every one, he received an offer. And that’s just how Aaron McRae drew it up when he devised his son’s summer schedule.
“I threw him in the fire (because I know) exactly who he is and what kind of competitor he is,” McRae said. “I knew once he got around that caliber of guys, that his level of play would rise. When he got there, he did just that.”
He still coaches his son today. Nearly a decade has passed since Amarian McRae began tackle football at 7 years old, and they’ve remained side by side on the gridiron.
Aaron McRae currently serves as a defensive assistant for the Cougars, working with the defensive backs. This fall will be his third season coaching in the program.
Back in his playing days, he donned the purple and gold for Booker High, also playing defensive back. He was a freshman on the only team in program history to reach a state title game.
Booker lost to St. Augustine, 31-15, in the 2005 FHSAA Class 3A state championship, but 20 years later, McRae watched his then-freshman son become a state champion.
He chooses not to be as hands-on when coaching Amarian McRae these days, instead trusting the work they’ve put in together over the years.
“I’ve been coaching him all his life, so we’ve gotten to the point where I don’t have to say much,” said Aaron McRae. “There is a lot of work to be done, still, but he’s far beyond where he should be at this age.”
There’s still plenty of summer left before Cardinal Mooney unofficially begins its season Aug. 14 against reigning 5A state champion St. Thomas Aquinas in the kickoff classic.
Amarian McRae’s definition of success this summer, though, isn’t about the quantity or quality of college offers he receives. He said it’s how prepared he feels when the fall arrives.
“Maybe it’s in the weight room or on the field. Maybe it’s getting faster or stronger,” McRae said. “I just want to make sure I set myself up this summer to have a great fall.”
He’ll continue fine-tuning his craft with his father — the built-in training partner close to his heart. Football has always been something they do, side-by-side.
McRae has grown, but little has changed since those childhood days of working on the route tree and running defensive back drills.
“That’s the same stuff we’re doing right now,” said Aaron McRae. “He’ll still come and get me off the couch saying, ‘Come on dad, throw me the ball.’”
