By Kenton Brooks

Phoenix Sports Writer

When your name is Prince McJunkins and you play quarterback, the comparisons are going to come.

One biased bystander — McJunkins’ own father — is more than impressed with the younger McJunkins, a 6-foot, 165-pound sophomore at Wagoner High School and the Phoenix Player of the Week for week eight of the 2008 season.

The older McJunkins played at Muskogee High School and later was a standout at Wichita State, becoming the first player in NCAA history to run for 2,000 yards and pass for 4,000 yards in a career.

“He tells me I’m way past him when he was in high school,” McJunkins Jr., said. “That makes me feel good because I’ve had people tell me that he was a really good athlete.”

Wagoner coach Dale Condict feels good about the younger McJunkins starting to make his own mark in area high school football this season — his first year to start on the varsity — as shown by his performance last Friday night against Tulsa Webster.

in the 55-0 win, McJunkins completed 6 of 8 passes for 188 yards and two touchdowns, while running for 83 yards on five carries and two more touchdowns — all in one half of play.

“It’s really surprising to me how well he’s managed the offense this season,” Condict said. “That’s one of the main jobs for a quarterback. He has almost an all-senior group around him and he’s doing a great job. We vote on our team captains for every game and he’s been it four weeks in a row. Prince has really gained the respect of his teammates and upper classmen.”

McJunkins Jr. looks to his teammates for the success he had against Webster.

“We did it as a team,” he insists. “The linemen did their job because I was able to make a five-yard gain to a 25- or 30-yard gain and the receivers took a six-yard pass to a 30-40-yard pass.”

Some may ask why McJunkins, Jr. is in Wagoner and not at Muskogee. The younger McJunkins laughs.

“That’s a good question,” he said. “My dad went to Iraq when I was in the fifth grade. My mother stayed here and I’m going to stick it out here.”

The younger McJunkins’ sister Janae is a junior on the girls basketball team.