Unable to play the game, Sunnyvale’s Ryan Mathew has turned his attention, aspirations to coaching
SUNNYVALE – Playing soccer was never an option for Ryan Mathew. But nobody ever said that coaching couldn’t be.
The small-framed 15-year-old had once hoped to be able to play, but his parents refused to allow it for safety reasons. Despite his love of football, he understood her reasoning – although it took him about a year to get over it.
Even so, he spends most of his days on a grass pitch with the Sunnyvale soccer team. On match days he can be caught with a clipboard in hand, lined up on the sidelines with the rest of the coaching staff. He’s one of them now.
Tech-wise, Mathew is the manager of the team. But if you ask the staff or any of the players, he’s Coach Mathews – “s” included. He operates the drone, which collects films, makes suggestions every now and then and acts like a sponge when he’s around the trainers.
Sunnyvale High School Second Football Team Manager Ryan Mathew prepares for a morning practice session at Sunnyvale High School on Monday, November 8, 2021. (Brandon Wade / special article)
“At first I was reluctant to be called coaches because these coaches do a lot better than me,” said Mathew. He felt he didn’t deserve the title. “But then I accepted him” when he started to assert himself.
Safety is a growing concern at all levels in football as more and more studies link chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) and traumatic brain injuries to the sport.
According to a 2021 study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, young tackle football athletes ages 6-14 suffered 15 times more head impacts than flag football athletes during a workout or game.
Participation in football across the country is steadily declining. From the 2009-10 season through the 2018-19 season, there was a 9.1% decrease in 11-man high school football participation, according to data from the National Federation of State High School Associations. That’s over 100,000 athletes in 11-man football alone.
Texas is on a steady rise when it comes to 11-man football participation. Over the same period, the state saw an increase of nearly 3%, which equates to about 4,500 athletes. The last time Texas saw a decline was between 2010 and 2016. The University Interscholastic League added a “Best Practices in Tackling” certification program to its certification program in 2017 for all high school and junior high coaches.
Mathew’s situation is unique. Sunnyvale head coach John Settle has been training for 32 years and said most people don’t take the time to get involved when the game isn’t an option.
Ryan Mathew sophomore of Sunnyvale High School, the manager of the football team, watches offensive linemen perform drills during morning practice at Sunnyvale High School on Monday, November 8, 2021.(Brandon Wade / special article)
Adding Mathew to the team, albeit in a non-playing role, was an easy decision.
“All we can do to help kids is what this job is about,” Settle said. “He dreams of one day being an offensive coordinator, whatever we can do to help him on this journey.”
Football is still pretty new to Mathew. Some Texans are introduced to the sport almost from birth. He didn’t see his first game until he was about eight years old. Not many people in his family play sports so it wasn’t a big deal.
The first game he saw was – as controversial as it is – the 2014 NFC Divisional Playoff game between the Dallas Cowboys and the Green Bay Packers, called “It was a catch” and “Dez catch it” in the vernacular of North Texas entered. That’s when he began to fall in love with the sport.
Despite pursuing a career in architecture or engineering, Mathew dreams of one day becoming an offensive coordinator. Right now, the closest he can get to shadowing Sunnyvale OC John Broom.
“It gives us a different perspective,” said assistant coach Zach Geer. “He’s kind of a player on the sidelines on the coaching staff, in meetings and all.”
Geer asked Mathew to join the team after seeing how curious and eager he was to learn even though he can’t play.
Mathew has a 70-page Google Slides presentation that he uses to study the game and understand things like blocking principles or unique defense coverings. He first sent the presentation to Geer and asked if it made sense. Next, he gets up at 5 a.m. every morning to practice.
His parents supported him, whether it was waking up at dawn to drive him to training or rushing a jacket to the stadium so he could keep up with the other coaches.
Lee Wiginton, president of THSCA and coach for Midlothian Heritage, told coaches across the state that her job may be 15% coaching and 85% character development and relationship building. Seeing the Sunnyvale people play a role in his development makes him proud.
“When I was 16, it wasn’t even on my radar to think about what I wanted to be,” said Wiginton. “When this child thinks about it, I have so much love and respect for him; so much admiration that he is pursuing his dream. “
Sunnyvale High School runner-up Ryan Mathew, the soccer team manager, poses for a photo during morning practice session at Sunnyvale High School, Monday, Nov. 8, 2021. (Brandon Wade / special article)
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