Only months after graduating from Owatonna High School, Ryley Glynn spent the fall coaching players that used to be his teammates. He said that Owatonna soccer gave him so much, he felt the desire to give back. Glynn was an all-state player on defense for the Huskies and was a member of the 2016 section championship team.

Glynn coached alongside longtime OHS head coach Bob Waypa over the summer. Waypa told him the ninth-grade head coaching job was open and he should apply. Glynn's reaction was, "I hadn't thought about it. Really?" Waypa told him he felt he would do a good job.

Glynn told KRFO that he, "Always wanted to coach," but thought that would come after college and getting a job. He asked his mother who indicated it might not be her first choice, but said "You're an adult," according to Glynn.

He says, "Owatonna soccer did so much for me...(initially) everything was about me. How you had to get yourself better. Then as the years went on, I learned how to respect other teammates...Respect everything...I felt I became a better person through soccer."

 

 

Glynn is taking classes at Riverland Community College with thoughts of elementary education and a coaching certificate.

He said coaching is a lot different and not as fun as playing, but claimed it's a close second. Glynn said the players didn't take him too seriously for the first week or two and that he had to put his foot down to get through to them. He never played directly with the current ninth-graders. Glynn says he helps with the varsity as well but holds back a bit there since he did play with some of those players.

Some would consider that Glynn has overcome some adversity in becoming an elite player since he only has one eye after cancer claimed the other when he was about two years old. He doesn't think along those lines, as he has been that way for as long as he can remember. His bigger challenge might be getting teenage boys to listen to him.

 

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