Sycamore High School football coach Joe Ryan told Sycamore Rotarians he is eager to return to fall football for the new school year after the Covid-19 pandemic forced a spring schedule last year. However, their first regular season practice of Monday last week was anything but normal when the team was forced inside to follow tornado protocols and then was forced to manage practice the following day with a 110-degree heat index.
The Spartans will open their season with a matchup against rival DeKalb on August 27. They will then have a non-conference game with at Oak Forest (a schedule match-up where it was difficult to find an opponent) before beginning Interstate 8 Conference play at home against Kaneland. Although the Spartans went 6-0 in last year’s Covid-impacted season and many of the key players from that team are returning, he said the team is missing seven utility players from last year which may impact their play.
Fine Master Jeff Jacobson worked in some facts and highlights about coach Ryan during his questions to raise funds for scholarships. Rotarians learned that Ryan has been coaching for 34 years, that he began his career in Eureka, that he has 163 career wins as head coach, and that he considers his signature career win a victory over Sterling in 2016. However, most importantly, coach Ryan won the gratitude of Rotarians when he began his talk by saying, “Sycamore is the greatest place I’ve ever been.”