If you were to say that Bo Ryan is not a good coach, you would be lying.
His seven NCAA Tournament appearances in as many years of coaching at Wisconsin, along with an Elite 8 appearance, three Big Ten regular season titles and two Big Ten Tournament trophies, can all attest to his ability as a head coach.
But if you said those factors alone made Ryan a good coach, you’d also be a bit misinformed.
Ryan is in fact a good coach — not only because he gives UW fans something to cheer about — but also because he cares about the well-being of those that he coaches.
For most Badger fans, he’s the guy on the sideline who yells at referees, makes sure the offense is swinging the ball and assures the defense plays hard on every possession.
But when it comes to life, Ryan knows there are things that are far more important than basketball.
Aside from being that leader on the court, he’s also on the NCAA Academic Enhancement Committee. That alone is a testament to the fact that he knows students will have lives beyond college basketball.
To the average university attendee, student-athlete might mean future NBA star. To Ryan, the first part of that phrase has a heightened meaning.
Currently, Ryan is trying to make it an NCAA policy that all basketball players must participate in summer school before their first year in school, so they can still graduate on time.
“I want these kids to come early to school,” Ryan said. “You’re taking class, you’re getting acclimated to the institution so that when you start classes you’re not looking for buildings after Labor Day.”
Since most men’s basketball players already arrive to school before the fall semester begins, Ryan feels that it is not only smart for players to go to summer school, but that it’s vital for their future success.
“So many of our guys go on to play professionally,” Ryan said. “But for the guys who aren’t, when they go to summer school they could be a semester short instead of a year short. If they come back in the summer and pick up some classes, they’ll be right there, ready to graduate.”
Ryan’s persistence in this case shows that he is unwilling to let students fall behind in their class work.
The ability to coerce students to desire to become both students and athletes is what makes a good coach, and that is exactly what Ryan has.
Obviously, Ryan cares about winning — but he also knows that students who don’t commit their time to the classroom are doomed to failure off the court, especially if professional basketball is not in their future.
“If the majority of our players are coming from backgrounds where they’re going to need a little help a run a little faster, then we need to get them some help,” Ryan said.
For players like senior Marcus Landry, this was exactly the case, and Ryan proved to be more than just a teacher of basketball.
Failing to meet academic standards during his freshman year, Landry was guided by Ryan back to eligibility — now, Landry is on the verge of graduating on time.
“It’s very important to him,” Landry said. “When I was academically ineligible my freshman year, you know I just thank God that he really stuck with me. He shows that he really cares, and the stuff he does and says in practice really keeps us geared both towards school and basketball.”
In terms of being a guiding hand, Ryan doesn’t shy away from helping his players in need of help.
“Sometimes you have to be the person that brings comfort to others,” Ryan said. “Someone who brings experience about a mishap … here, most of our guys have grown up in backgrounds where they know what it’s all about.”
At an academically rigorous school like UW, there isn’t much room to falter, and Ryan knows the players need to be responsible for their actions.
“We’re Wisconsin; you have to commit yourself academically and personally — there’s no fudge factor there,” he said.
As for schools that don’t think academics are a vital concern, he has a little bit different view on the situation.
“I think summer school is a good thing,” he said. “If [those universties] aren’t going to commit funds to it, then maybe they should be in another division.”
Jonah is a sophomore hoping to major in journalism. Don’t care about Bo Ryan’s emphasis on life after basketball? Think wins and losses are the only thing on his mind? Jonah can be reached at [email protected].