Focused and Silent - Appreciating Ryan Maloney

As our blog hits a new point in it's life I feel the need to tell a story about our new Strength & Conditioning Coach, Ryan Maloney.  Ryan is much smarter than I and tends to be more concise.  Hopefully you'll still enjoy this story about my first experience with Ryan.

I first met Ryan when he was a student here at Fredonia and he was hired to work in intramurals.  He had poofy hair and a wry smile that appeared only so often.  Even then he had a very calm and mature demeanor.  His outstanding intelligence, dedication and professionalism were obvious, especially for a young college-aged man.  He was studying exercise science and took an interest in how athletes warmed up before practices and competitions.  I was excited to give him an opportunity to work with the volleyball athletes.

Towards the end of our fall 2008 season, during his senior year, he began warming up our team with dynamic exercises before practices.  He called it 'movement preparation.'  This was during a time when dynamic exercises weren't the norm.  Ryan was intense and had a sense of purpose.  The athletes were hesitant at first.  But something about Ryan's purpose caught their interest.  Even if only for Ryan's sake they were going to give him his ten minutes.

The last weekend of the regular season we had a non-conference tournament and on the second day we got beaten badly.  We dropped two matches 0-3 against New Paltz and Stevens Tech.  We lost the second set to Stevens 8-25.  Before we got on the bus, the players held a team meeting.  During the meeting the team decided that they were going to be focused and silent from now on during Ryan's dynamic warm-up at practice.  Everyone agreed.

During the SUNYAC Championship in Dods, the other teams laughed at our unique approach to our warm up.  We were focused and silent while moving when most teams socialized and didn't take it as seriously.  That weekend our team never lost a set and won our first ever conference championship in front of 800 fans.

The days that followed were chaotic as we prepared for our first NCAA tournament.  There was never any question that Ryan was going to travel with us.  No question at all.  He earned it.  The athletes would've paid out of their own pockets.  They'd only known him for about three weeks.

The 2008 Blue Devils at NCAAs

In round one for our first ever NCAA tournament match we faced nationally ranked Haverford.  Ryan warmed us up.  He was so engaged.  He actually kind of grunted a couple of times.  Every athlete was focused and silent.  Haverford watched us curiously and didn't know what to make of how we prepared for the match against them.  We defeated them in five grueling sets.  Round two... nationally ranked Stevens Tech (the same team that defeated us handily two weekends prior).  They watched us warm-up and seemed amused.  We were focused and silent.  We then defeated them in five sets.  

Our two assistant coaches and Ryan and I got back to the hotel and we were freaking out, jumping up and down and hugging each other.  The feeling was amazing.  We had just pulled off what another New York region rep called the biggest upset in the history of our region.

In our sweet sixteen match we were defeated in another grueling five set match.  We were physically and emotionally exhausted during that fifth set.  Even though we lost and our season had ended, the mood was a sense of accomplishment.  Everyone knew we gave everything we had and what we just experienced was special.

That was Ryan's first experience as a collegiate coach.  What a unique way to start!  He asked me if every season was like that.  I told him we have to work towards that.

Ryan has had many different roles in and out of our athletic department since then.  He lived and volunteered in Alaska.  He worked in sports information and polished his writing skills.  He has studied the sport of volleyball and has a better understanding of the sport from an analytical perspective.  He took a strong interest in developing our recruiting strategy and has become more outgoing and a stronger communicator.  He has managed social media accounts and really has a handle on how to promote and inform.  And he has strengthened his holistic approach to training athletes.

One day I was talking to him about my horrible eyesight.  I told him that if I lived in 'cave man times' before glasses were invented that I would've been picked off by a predator by now.  He immediately replied that I would've lived in a community where other people would see for me.

Ryan in his new office

That's what makes Ryan so special... his sense of community and service.  He is always trying to better himself so he can better others.  He has a real sense that he is part of something bigger than himself.  Ryan also finds the positive in everyone and everything.

I can't think of better qualities for a coach and mentor.  

I am proud to know Ryan and I am grateful for everything he has done for our volleyball program.  We speak to our athletes about leaving the program better than when you found it.  Ryan has done that every year he has been involved... and then some.

His new role as the Strength and Conditioning Coach allows him to work with all of our athletes here at Fredonia.  I can't wait to see what the future holds.

If you'd like a daily dose of Ryan and his many thoughts about developing athletes and more, he has a new blog that I highly recommend at https://jonryanmaloney.wordpress.com/