New WHS wrestling coach ready to rumble

Ryan Boyle will be the new Whitefish High School head wrestling coach. Boyle, 28, in his third year as the school’s industrial technology teacher, was recently hired to replace Ryan Hoffman as coach.

This will be Boyle’s 24th consecutive year in the sport, either as a wrestler, coach or referee. He grew up in Lexington, Neb., where he was a high school wrestler, and then went on to earn his degree at University of Nebraska-Lincoln. While there, he coached and refereed.

Boyle taught and coached both football and wrestling for two years in LeMars, Iowa. He moved to Montana “because my bride was going to college at Montana State,” he said.

He admits to not being sure about the timing of his application, but “ever since high school, my dream has been to be a head wrestling coach. This is what I’ve been waiting for,” he said.

“There’s just a lot of kids that needed to have a coach, needed to have this program. I wanted to make sure this program continues. I couldn’t see another program die,” he said. “And the closer I get (to the season), it was one of those things ... I couldn’t go without it. I’m really looking forward to it.

Boyle is totally engaged in the sport.

“I absolutely love (wrestling). It has always been my favorite sport to compete in,” he said.

The biggest obstacle facing the first-year coach is lack of numbers.

“Right now, we’re going to be a young team,” he said. “I don’t know if we’ll have any seniors coming back. We do have some kids who have been here and who have wrestled for a long time.”

The big challenge will be to recruit in the hallways.

“Getting the kids out and getting them into the room,” he said. “If I can get those kids in the room and get them to stay a couple weeks, I can get them to fall in love with the sport. It’s just tough to get them out.”

Like any other sports program, a coach needs to be optimistic going in, Boyle said.

“I want to be competing with Columbia Falls, Polson and with Havre. I know that’s a long and lofty goal, but that’s the ultimate goal,” he said.

An assistant coach has not yet been hired, but Boyle said both Sully Sullivan and Cody Morris will return as volunteer coaches.