Of the more than one million high school football participants, only 3% make it to the Division I level — an extremely rare and impressive feat for any student athlete.
But for redshirt junior running back Albert Kunickis III, who was born without his right forearm and hand due to Amniotic Band Syndrome, a condition occurring in one in 1,200 to 15,000 births, his journey to the Big Ten is all the more exceptional. However, what might have been an insurmountable obstacle to playing football for most served as a motivator for Kunickis.
Never any different
Since he was little, Kunickis’ parents wanted to make sure their son never felt sorry for himself because of his limb deficiency. At home, they made a point to treat him no differently from his two siblings. That meant the same chores and the same expectations.
When the family went out for groceries, for example, Kunickis was responsible for hauling in just as many bags from the car as everyone else, his mother, Diana Kunickis, recalled.
This mentality, his parents said, has stuck with him his whole life.
In high school, Kunickis worked as a busboy at one of the most popular restaurants in his hometown of Lemont, Illinois — Rosebud.
“On a daily basis, I was carrying like 15 plates — ten in this (left) arm, five in this (right) arm — every night, weaving through tables and stuff,” Kunickis told The Daily. “Nothing’s really hard for me.”
Bobbing and weaving would be good practice for his career as a running back, and stacking the plates, he said, was even more challenging than running with the football.
The eldest of three, Kunickis played several sports as a child: baseball, soccer, football and basketball. Though best known at NU for his exploits at running back, Kunickis’ parents proudly note that he can still dust most two-armed foes in one-on-one basketball and catch any ball you throw at him.
Football, however, became Kunickis’ first love.
“At first, me and my brother didn’t really like it, because there’s long days, summer workouts and a lot of conditioning,” he said. “But when the season rolled around and we got to hit, tackle and run over people, I started to love it.”
Football quickly grew into an obsession for Kunickis, and soon he was pouring all his time into the sport. It was not all glamour from there, though.
Growing up, Kunickis was no stranger to trash talk about his limb deficiency, whether it was kids laughing at him at LEGOLAND or mocking him on the football field during a must-win middle school game.
“Before the game, I was getting chirped heavily,” Kunickis said. “They were like, ‘No way, this kid’s playing, blah blah blah. He sucks, blah blah blah,’”
But the haters only served as motivation. In that game, Kunickis, then a two-way player, snagged two interceptions and scored a touchdown.
According to his younger brother, Nathan Kunickis, the jeers also served as fuel for his good attitude.
“He would never talk back. It was just ‘Hey, good game,’” Nathan Kunickis said. “He’s just grown up and realized: ‘You know what, I’m living with it, and I’m gonna show the people that this is how I rock. It’s just a part of his swagger.”
Football became a family affair for the Kunickis clan. Kunickis spent much of his time in middle and high school training alongside Nathan, a linebacker. Their father, Albert Kunickis Jr., stayed out with the brothers every day, rain or snow, helping them refine their craft.
“In high school, we were always the last ones on the field,” Kunickis said.
The brothers pushed each other their whole lives to the point that even breakfast would get heated.
Growing up, to maximize their fitness, the brothers competed in a game they called “extra belly” to see who could scarf down more eggs. Though Nathan is now 19 and Albert is 21, the competition between them remains fierce.
“He and I both know that I have the upper hand at 17 (eggs), but he’s probably going to tell you that he’s got me beat,” Nathan said.
Competition aside, Nathan, who plays Division I football at Brown, said that his older brother has been an inspiration his whole life. Though college separates them for the time being, he still remains a role model for Nathan.
“I’m always thinking about him, because he works his ass off to the point where it’s like, ‘Why am I not doing this?’ Plus, he’s got one arm,” Nathan said. “I’m just always thinking, ‘Oh, he’s probably eating more than me. Let me get an extra plate, because I got that extra belly.”
Becoming indestructible
Kunickis’ dedication applies to almost everything in his life.
He’s been in a committed relationship for the last five years and finds time to talk with his girlfriend daily. He gets to the training facility at least an hour and 15 minutes before practice every day — and for years was routinely the first one there. He is also a devout Christian and has committed himself to reading the entire Bible this year.
He said this mindset comes from the adversity he’s faced his whole life.
Throughout his journey, he’s had to make some adjustments to accommodate his limb deficiency. Kunickis wears a glove on his left hand, but not on his right arm. As a result, when handling the football, he’s had to learn how to adapt to two very different sensations. In the gym, he modifies certain workouts by using resistance bands and cables for exercises he can’t perform conventionally.
Still, despite common misconceptions about potential pain to his upper right arm during contact, it actually feels more indestructible if anything, Kunickis said.
With these adjustments, his strong work ethic and dedication, Kunickis continued to improve year over year throughout high school. By the end of his four years at Lemont High School, he scored 33 varsity touchdowns in just 17 games, rushed for 1,393 yards and caught 14 passes without ever dropping the ball.
While stuffing the stat sheet, the Kunickis brothers attended football camps at colleges all around the country to display their abilities. When they came to NU, Kunickis shined.
Though he didn’t have any stars coming out of high school, Lou Ayeni, the former NU running back coach and current running back coach for the Denver Broncos, and former coach Pat Fitzgerald saw something in him. Fitzgerald offered him a preferred walk-on opportunity right then and there, Nathan said.
Though he also had offers from Notre Dame and Michigan, Northwestern felt like “family immediately” to Albert, Nathan said. This sense of home, combined with a top-tier engineering school, made it an easy choice for him.
One arm, many talents
Kunickis first took the field as a Wildcat as a redshirt freshman against UTEP. Since then, he’s suited up another four times. He said these experiences have been unforgettable.
These moments are meaningful not only for Kunickis but also for coach David Braun’s staff.
Running backs coach Aristotle Thompson said he is particularly impressed by Kunickis’ desire on the field and in the weight room.
“He’s not looking for a blow because ‘Hey, I only have one arm,’” Thompson said. “He’s finding a way to do it and then some. I love that mentality.”
With dreams of making the NFL, Kunickis said he’s starving for more.
“That guy’s going to get his opportunity and he’s going to take full advantage of it,” Braun said in an interview with FOX last November.
A true student athlete, Kunickis is deeply committed to his academics, majoring in mechanical engineering. He said staying grateful helps keep him focused.
“It’s hard balancing (school) and football, but you got to get it done,” Kunickis said. “You’re only hitting college once and especially at a beautiful, great university like this. You’ve got to maximize everything.”
His academic drive is also attributable to his upbringing. In high school, straight As and rigorous Advanced Placement classes were the family standard for the Kunickis brothers. The brothers were even prohibited from attending football camps if their grades and test scores were lacking.
“Academics was number one, football was number two,” Nathan Kunickis said.
Creating a brighter future for disabled athletes
Kunickis never wanted to wear a prosthetic arm as a kid. The prosthetics never felt natural. But when it came to building muscle for football, it was almost unavoidable.
To make matters worse, the prosthetics couldn’t keep up as he got stronger. When he would attempt a bench press, the prosthetic would crack, his mom said.
“You could see him get frustrated with it,” Nathan said. “It’s snapping. It’s upsetting. I think any other person would just be like, ‘Hey, I’m done. Screw this, F that.’ But Al always was like, ‘You know what? I’m gonna figure out how to do it my own way.’”
Sometimes Kunickis would just exercise without the prosthetic, leaving his parents concerned about his safety, especially when he resorted to balancing the bar on his right arm to bench press.
“If you watched it, you’d be like ‘Okay, that’s kind of crazy,’” his father said.
Now at NU and fueled by his frustrations, he sees an opportunity for change that his degree can help with. He hopes to help develop new kinds of prosthetics geared towards athletes, his parents said. Kunickis has already taken strides towards achieving this goal.
Kunickis was one of six student-athletes to receive the Immersion, Mentorship and Actualization Program Award in 2024. This award brought Kunickis to Iceland to connect with people working in the world of prosthetic devices.
More recently, last summer, Kunickis interned at Levi Hargrove’s Center for Bionic Medicine at the nation’s No. 1 physical medicine and rehabilitation hospital, Shirley Ryan AbilityLab. There, Kunickis wrote computer programs that connected to sensors on his arm, allowing his muscle signals to be read and used to control a prosthetic hand. He presented research to scientific audiences and walked with a powered prosthetic leg.
Laura Miller, a prosthetist, and Kyle Embry, the principal investigator at the lab, worked with Kunickis this summer and said his understanding of prosthetic-user needs and engineering education helped bring a unique perspective to the lab. With his degree and background, Miller said Kunickis has the potential to make significant contributions to the field, especially for athletes.
Miller and Embry were also struck by the commitment and curiosity with which Kunickis approached his work at the lab while balancing a demanding summer practice schedule that had him working out twice a day.
“I’m happy to brag about Albert,” Embry wrote in an email to The Daily. “That kind of dedication is admirable in any student-athlete.”
Helping others
Beyond his research and athletics, Kunickis has also made personal connections within the limb deficiency community. Shaquem Griffin, a one-handed former NFL linebacker, and Kunickis have chatted on the phone numerous times.
“He’s given me a lot of great advice, ways to go about my daily life, and how to take it to the next level,” Kunickis said.
Now in his fourth year in Evanston, Kunickis has stepped up as a mentor for younger football players in similar situations.
Trooper Wright, a high school football player from North Carolina who lost his arm in an ATV accident, reached out to Kunickis for advice. The two talked and Wright even joined Kunickis at a spring practice.
For his family, watching Kunickis transform into a role model and example has been a beautiful thing.
“Seeing him be one of those people showing that you can have top-tier education, top-tier athletics and a top-tier life, even with adversity,” Nathan said. “Those who are in the same situation, are gonna realize I can go and do this too and fight for my future. I think it’s real special.”
Kunickis will graduate from NU in the spring and hopes to continue playing football. Though he doesn’t know where his journey will take him as of now, he knows his arm and the resilience it has taught him will always be with him.
“It honestly feels like a superpower. I feel like I can break through any barrier,” he said. “Having that mindset is an awesome thing.”
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