WICHITA - Ryan Smith announces his retirement from Newman Wrestling after 17 years as head coach and a total of 20 years on the wrestling staff.
 
Ryan Smith joined Newman Wrestling in its inaugural season as a student-athlete. After earning his bachelor's degree in business administration in 2005, Smith became a member of the staff. In 2008, with an MBA from Newman in hand, Smith became Jets wrestling's second ever head coach. Smith has since maintained that post spanning 17 seasons. At the conclusion of this year's national championships in Indianapolis, Indiana, Smith's tenure will come to a close.
 
Gratitude and appreciation sum up Coach Smith's thoughts on 21 years in the program. Smith said, "It has been an absolute privilege to be a part of this program over the years and I can't thank both my past [and] current staff enough for the dedication, sacrifice and commitment to "Our" program over the years."
 
Service has been at the forefront of Coach Smith's career. Smith joined the Army Reserves in February 2001 as a student at Labette Community College in Parsons, Kansas. He then attended Dakota Wesleyan University in Mitchell, South Dakota, where he transitioned from the Army Reserves to the Army National Guard. When Smith transferred to Newman University as a senior in 2004, he discovered and joined the 184th Wing of the Air National Guard. After nearly 20 years of drill weekends and service at McConnell Air Force Base, Smith retired from the U.S. Air National Guard in October 2024.
 
Beginning with the Jets' first foray into NCAA competition, Smith has continued the process of building a solid program at Newman. That process took its biggest step forward with Noel Torres earning the school's first NCAA championship when he won the 184-pound class in 2018. Smith has coached nineteen national qualifiers, nine MIAA individual conference champions, six all-americans and a national champion.
 
Hall of Famer, Noel Torres, won the lone NCAA Division II Championship in Cedar Rapids, Iowa in 2018. Torres went on to compete on the global stage before returning to the Jets this year to coach alongside his former coach.
 
Dustin Reed brought home the team's first NCAA All-American honor by finishing fifth at 125 pounds at the NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships in 2016, and followed that up with a seventh-place finish in 2017. Tyler Mies joined Torres as an All-American in 2018, finishing sixth and helping the Jets to a 12th-place finish at the NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships. In 2019, Kameron Frame joined this elite group finishing sixth and Tyler Mies secured his second All-American honor by finishing fifth while the Jets once again placed in the top twenty at the national championships. Frame and Tyler Lawley were named All-Americans when the COVID-19 pandemic canceled that year's championship.
 
In more recent seasons, under Smith, two Jets have qualified for DII National Championships and three Jets have earned MIAA honors. In the 2022-23 season, In the 2022-23 season, Jevin Foust earned MIAA Freshman of the Year and Jace Fisher punched his ticket to the NCAA Championships in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Fisher was named NWCA Division II Rookie Wrestler of the Year Finalist in the 2021-22 season. Last season, Dylan Sheler qualified for the DII National Championship hosted by Newman University in Park City. Jace Fisher was awarded with All-MIAA honors. This season, under Smith, Jace Fisher qualified for the DII National Championship for the second time in his career. Caleb Wunsch was awarded with All-MIAA second team honors this season.
 
Smith has placed an emphasis on program culture during his tenure. That culture has prompted numerous alumni to give back to the program that built the person they are today. This year's staff is comprised of Smith and three former student-athletes of his, Kameron Frame, Kendall Frame, and Noel Torres.
 
"Thank you to every wrestler that came through… it was an absolute honor to sit in your corner.  I appreciate you more than you could ever imagine, but that appreciation has grown a little bit more over the years from that 26 year old coach to today.  Most importantly, thank you to my wife and kids for the patience and understanding that sometimes other people's kids were just a little more important at times," said Ryan Smith.
 
A search for the next head coach of Newman Wrestling begins immediately.