By Joseph Goodman
DeMeco Ryans wanted to be an electrical engineer, but that was probably his mom talking.
Well, let me correct that. Not completely accurate.
When DeMeco Ryans was a senior in high school at Jess Lanier in Bessemer, he already knew that he wanted to study electrical engineering in college. Martha Ryans was always there for her son, and Martha impressed upon DeMeco the importance of math in school. As for DeMeco’s dreams beyond college, he wanted to play in the NFL.
Ryans accomplished that goal, and now he has exceeded even his biggest dreams. DeMeco Ryans of Bessemer, who had a 4.0 GPA in high school, and was really good at math, and graduated with honors from the University of Alabama, is now the new head football coach of the Houston Texans.
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He ended up majoring in management at Alabama. An NFL coach at 38 years old, I’d say he’s getting the most out of that degree.
Ryans played for the Houston Texans, so he’s already familiar with the organization. It seems like a perfect fit, but the Texans have been a mess lately. Ryans will be the fifth head coach of the team since the beginning of 2020. The Texans’ run of ignominy began when Bill O’Brien was fired four games into that season.
It all fell apart for O’Brien when the Texans named him the team’s general manager. Go figure. O’Brien was Alabama’s offensive coordinator for two seasons after leaving Houston, but he’s now back in the NFL with the New England Patriots. I had hoped the turnover of coordinators at Alabama would give Nick Saban an opportunity to bring in Ryans as a “head coach in waiting,” but “Meco” had a better plan.
Ryans was San Francisco’s defensive coordinator for two seasons. It was enough for Houston to know they needed to bring one of their favorite former players back home. Ryans’ defense carried the 49ers’ all the way to the most recent NFC championship game despite considerable limitations with the offense. Young coaches are the trend in the NFL, but Ryans is ready and he’s more than capable.
And there’s nothing stopping me from still considering him Alabama’s “head coach in waiting,” right? Look, at some point in his career, Ryans has to come back to Tuscaloosa so he can try and win his first Iron Bowl. I’m not counting 2001, OK? Ryans was 0-3 as a starter in football’s greatest rivalry game.
One day, perhaps, but for now Ryans will attempt what no former player for Alabama has ever really accomplished, and that’s being a successful head coach in the NFL. Ryans is the seventh former Alabama player to be a head coach in the NFL. The others were Harry Gilmer, Ray Perkins, Mike Riley, Bart Starr, Richard Williamson and Freddie Kitchens.
That’s a long list.
This is a short list. Ryans is the first Black head coach in the NFL from not only the University of Alabama but also the entire state. For Ryans, it’s the beginning of a new journey. For people back home, it is a historic day and a monumental way to begin Black History Month.
There have been some great football coaches from the Birmingham area through the years. None of them reached the heights where Ryans now soars at such a young age. How young is Ryans? Well, for perspective, he’s more than two years younger than Cadillac Williams.
In college, Ryans played against Williams in three Iron Bowls. Williams was a successful interim coach for Auburn last season after the firing of Bryan Harsin. People said Williams wasn’t ready to be Auburn’s permanent head coach. I will remain convinced that he was.
There was never any doubt about Ryans despite his age. Could people have predicted that Ryans would one day be a head coach in the NFL? Well, yeah. He was considered like a coach on the field his senior years of high school and college. He was academic all-state at Jess Lanier, and a finalist for the William Campbell Trophy in 2005. That national award is considered the “academic Heisman.”
Anticipating Ryans’ jump to head coach, I went through some old newspapers last week reading up about his time at Jess Lanier. On Dec.12, 2001, the Birmingham News named Ryans its scholar athlete of the week for the Bessemer edition of the “Neighborhoods” section. Ryans has always been a learner. That’s his secret to success, but of course that’s not really a secret at all.
Martha’s son always had the ability to learn and then apply that information. On the field, Ryans led a turnaround in high school from his junior to senior seasons. Jess Lanier went 1-8 in 2000 and then 10-3 in 2001. For scholar athlete of the week, he was asked about his study secrets.
“You should listen well in class,” Ryans said.
I hope everyone is taking notes.
