Star Athlete To Leave Until Fall

Ronald D. Cuccia '82, quarterback of the freshman football team and one of the most highly sought-after high school athletes in the country, has left Harvard and will not return until next fall at the earliest.

Cuccia, who is at his home in Los Angeles, will not return to Cambridge because of academic and personal problems, a close friend who asked not to be named said yesterday.

"He needs some time to straighten things out," the friend said, adding that "he'll definitely be back next year."

Several members of the Administrative Board, where Cuccia's case was discussed, declined to say whether he will be eligible to play football next year.

Cuccia could not be reached for comment yesterday.

Superstar

In his three seasons at Wilson High School in Los Angeles, Cuccia set eight prep school records, led his team to a 39-0 record and won the California most valuable player award in his senior year. The coach at Wilson was his father, Victor Cuccia.

After graduating fourth in his class of about 300, Cuccia received scholarship offers from dozens of colleges before he decided to attend Harvard.

Cuccia led the freshman football team to a 4-1-1 record last fall. He completed 18 of 24 passes for 245 yards in the 13-13 tie at Princeton before he suffered a partially separated shoulder in the Brown game, which kept him out of the Yale game November 17.