I don’t post much on internet forums, but I do like to read them. This is probably my last post ever. So, I just want to give a shout out to say how proud I am of my son Ryan Murdock. I’m not trying to brag about any accolades, I’m just trying to share how happy I am for him.

It’s hard and kind of sad to think that I won’t be able to watch him wrestle in HS any more. So, writing this post has been therapeutic and helped me sort out my feelings. It’s really more for me than anyone else. But, I am looking forward to watching him wrestle next year at Columbia University.

Ryan had a tough season and didn’t quite reach his goal of being a State Champion, but 4[SUP]th[/SUP] place is still pretty good. Most people don’t know this, but Ryan tore his meniscus in January and gutted out the remainder of the season. It was hard for him to lose weight and he fought with his knee swelling up and locking up. But, all in all, he’s a tough kid and didn’t complain much. He just tended to get a little crabby the day or two before a match when he was hungry. LOL. He knows that it’s all what a wrestler has to endure and no excuse for any performance.

I finished up the Stat’s for our wrestling teams upcoming banquet and I was pretty amazed with what Ryan was able to accomplish in HS. I realize that many wrestlers have achieved loftier goals, but I am very proud of the career that Ryan has had. Here’s a glance:

Ryan Murdock HS Career Records

WIN - LOSS RECORD – CAREER

• 172 wins – 24 losses

INDIVIDUAL TOURNAMENT TITLES

• 17

PINS - CAREER

• 77 (24, 13, 13, 27)

TAKEDOWNS - CAREER

• 403 (88, 82, 129, 104)

NEARFALLS (2 & 3 Point) - CAREER

• 275 (72, 63, 85, 55)

MEDINA TOURNAMENT

• 2009 - 2012 4x Placer (8[SUP]th[/SUP], 3[SUP]rd[/SUP], 3[SUP]rd[/SUP], 2[SUP]nd[/SUP])

SECTIONAL TOURNAMENT

• 2009 Champion
• 2010 2[SUP]nd[/SUP] Place
• 2011 Champion
• 2012 Champion

DISTRICT TOURNAMENT

• 2009 5[SUP]th[/SUP] place
• 2010 2[SUP]nd[/SUP] place
• 2011 Champion
• 2012 2[SUP]nd[/SUP] place

STATE TOURNAMENT

• 2009 *State Alternate
• 2010 State 5[SUP]th[/SUP] Place
• 2011 State 6[SUP]th[/SUP] Place
• 2012 State 4[SUP]th[/SUP] Place

OHSAA SCHOLAR ATHLETE

• 2010, 2011 & 2012

ALL-AMERICAN

• 2010 USA Cadet National Duals AA
• 2010 AAU Jr. Olympics Champion
• 2011 AAU Jr. Olympics Champion

It was also great seeing a lot of kids that I have coached, driven to summer tournaments, or that Ryan has wrestled with over the years, do well at State. Especially, the Little Rock’s alumni wrestlers. Congratulations to all of you!!

Why your last post?
Seems like you could contribute a good bit to the wrestling forums which I dont post on much but I do follow pretty closely.
Congrats to your son nothing wrong with 4 years of those accolades.

Congrats to you and Ryan!
Ryan is truly a great kid not just a great wrestler!
You do have alot to be proud of!
Good luck at Columbia!

Sounds like you raised a pretty good wrestler and a better young man. Congrats.

Great kid! You and Colleen should be very proud.

It has been a true pleasure for my son and I to get to know Ryan. We met him during freshman year. When people say he is better person than a wrestler it is absolutely true. My son was nowhere near Ryan's level when they first met but Ryan took the time to teach and help develop him. Even though they went to different High Schools, Ryan never did anything but help. He became the goal. My son strived and worked to become better because he wanted to be as good as Ryan. For that Ryan I thank you. Wrestling has taught my son so much and Ryan has been a huge part of that.

With Ryan always being the goal it was truly fitting that my son's last match of his high school career at the State Tournament happened to be against Ryan. It was an ironic end to what has been a very successful High School career for my son as well. His accomplishments don't approach Ryan's but there is still very much to be proud of. In the end it came down to Ryan winning by a point. In true Ryan fashion later that day he texted to apologize for being the one to knock him out of the tournament. Ryan you are a TRUE champion. Good luck at Columbia.

I know Ryan from work and I know he loves wrestling. Was really pulling for him this weekend...but no shame in losing to the eventual state champion. Hopefully the knee heals up and he can get back st it. Really wish him the best of luck in college...Columbia is a great school.

It was also great seeing a lot of kids that I have coached, driven to summer tournaments, or that Ryan has wrestled with over the years, do well at State. Especially, the Little Rock’s alumni wrestlers. Congratulations to all of you!!

I can't believe high school wrestling is over either. Zach and Ryan first met in either 4th or 5th grade when we decided to join the Little Rocks program because of recommendations we had received about how wonderful the program was. At that time, Dave Murdock and Dave Kline were the coaches and they put so much of themselves into teaching those boys to not only wrestle, but wrestle well. Aside from how much it helped Zach, we have such fond memories of our Little Rock days. Over the years, Ryan has always been so supportive of Zach because Zach, too, worked hard to try be as accomplished and successful as Ryan has been. But I have never seen Ryan act cocky or better than anyone. He really is a great kid! So I agree, Dave, congrats to Little Rocks alumni - Ryan, Zach, Trevor, Chris, Guiseppi (sp?), Wes - I know there's so many more but off the top of my head, not a bad crop of wrestlers! Zach and I wish you much success at Columbia, Ryan and thank you and your family for all the support you've given us over the years.

queencitybuckeye;1104397 wrote:Sounds like you raised a pretty good wrestler and a better young man. Congrats.

I'll just echo this. I also won't be mad if you stick around and keep posting. This is a great thread.

Shows how hard work, dedication, a lot of guts and passion can create such success for a career. Nice job Ry guy

Congrats! Of all the career accomplishments I'm most impressed with is the 3 OHSAA scholar-athlete awards. It's amazing to me how these elite high school athletes can perform at such a high level in the classroom considering all that they go through.....both on and off the mat.

Ditto that D4S!!! Congrats to you Ryan... Good luck in college. Excellent high school academic and spots record:thumbup:.

Two thumbs up!

I don't normally post but I did want to congratulate Ryan and Dad. Ryan is a disciplined hard working kid and deserves all he worked for and more. I didn't know about his knee but that does show how tough he is. The other thing people don't generally know about Ryan is how smart he is and how he is quite young to be graduating, especially in this day of "redshirting" high schoolers.


As far as Dave, Ryan's dad - We were also part of the Little Rocks club and it was a fantastic experience. Dave was an excellent coach and facilitator. It gave my son a very good team experience in an otherwise individual sport.