Owasso wrestling head coach: from father to son
By Katelyn Fisher
Photo of the Owasso Rams wrestling team taken by Cambry Shields
The Owasso boys wrestling team has started off the year with a new head coach, Kyle Ryan. Coach Ryan is the son of Mike Ryan, who was the previous head coach at Owasso High School. Coach Ryan was greatly influenced by his dad throughout his wrestling career and into his journey as a coach.
He explains, “...people say you are who you spend most of your time with, and growing up wrestling and having a dad as a coach, I obviously spend most of the time of my life around my dad and I think one way or another it just kind of rubbed off on me.”
Coach Ryan wants to follow in his father's footsteps as a head coach and believes he can take the wrestling team to the next level. By using what his dad left and things he’s picked up over the years, Coach Ryan believes that he can help the wrestling team succeed in their goals for their upcoming season.
Coach Ryan states, “He [Mike Ryan] started a solid foundation with this program, but I do still think it has not seen its peak yet and I think that’s something as a team, we can all work together and take this program to that new height, but I don’t think that would have been possible without the solid groundwork laid before me.”
He intends to accomplish this by encouraging the wrestlers to attend every practice, ready to work and improve individually. As a former wrestler, Coach Ryan knows the dedication necessary to become a great athlete and a great wrestler.
Isaac Bowman, a junior on the wrestling team, states, “Through his experiences in wrestling, he helps model our practices to train us to be the best.”
Coach Ryan says that in order to be successful, you have to put your all into whatever it is you're doing and come with a purpose. Without purpose, there isn’t that same drive every athlete needs to better themselves. He incorporates this idea into their daily practices by pushing each athlete to their full potential every time.
He states, “Another thing we’ve really focused on is just kind of being more intentional with our workouts: Working out with a purpose.”
Coach Ryan believes it is important to have not only academics but also athletics at schools. He thinks that every student's full potential should be brought out, whether that be through test scores or through sporting events.
He mentions, “At the end of the day… not all of us are great at the books; some of us have more abilities that are physical.”
The wrestlers appreciate the time and effort Coach Ryan puts into coaching them. He knows that the best way to lead is by example and therefore shows up with an intention of getting better every day because that’s what he expects from them.
Another junior on the team, Jaxson Humphries, emphasizes, “He works us really hard and he pushes us to our full extent.”
Coach Ryan has quickly adapted to coaching at Owasso High School and has done a great job showing his team what it takes to become a great athlete. The wrestlers have high hopes for their fast approaching 2022-2023 season, all thanks to Coach Ryan.