This year, the Harding football team welcomes its newest assistant coach, Ryan Derrick. Joining the faculty as the wide receivers coach, Derrick is no stranger to Harding university. As a 1997 alumnus, Derrick is a former teammate of Head Football Coach Paul Simmons. Following their time as students, the pair went on to coach together for eight years at Harding Academy of Memphis.
“It was an easy choice for us,” Simmons said. “We almost always know who we want to get.”
He stated that Harding exists within a unique context among college football teams across the United States, in that the vast majority of the coaching staff are alumni.
“One of the reasons why we succeed here is because we have such a special group of coaches,” Simmons said. “They don’t view what we do as work, we all view this as mission.”
As such, the athletics department constructs an environment which evokes a strong sense of home — a tradition Derrick seems to be continuing.
Following the belief that the team works best when it functions as a family, Derrick involves his own when possible. Within the first week of school, Derrick and his family have already thrown birthday celebrations for two of the wide receivers. Derrick said his wife asked the players what they wanted for their birthday, and worked to make two custom desserts for them: one for the team to share, and one to keep for themselves.
One of these two students, senior Darius Brown, is entering his fourth year with the football team and his second year as receiver. As expected with a change of leadership, some aspects of practice, which began Aug. 7, are a little bit different. Brown said Derrick is “blending his own style and seeing how it fits with us,” but above all “he adds to us.”
Derrick stated that upon receiving the invitation from Simmons, he had a brief discussion about it with his family, but aside from that “it was an easy decision.” Him, his wife and both his children were excited about the move to the university, and are just as invested in the new position as he is.
Detailing the specifics about what was necessary for players at Harding, and thus all the more so their coach, Simmons stated “we have to have young men that are unselfish… that mentality is magnified times ten at receiver… it takes a very special guy to excel at receiver here.” Given their experience together, Simmons earnestly believes Derrick meets those character-driven requirements —“I trust him completely.”
Explaining their aim for the season, Derrick and Simmons both maintained that dedication to God remains the quintessential focus for them as individuals and for the team. As Simmons explained, “the goal for us remains consistent, and that goal is to have the very best culture in college football in America, and for us that begins and ends with trying to honor God.” Derrick echoed the same mentality, adding on that the football team is a missions field, and his reason for taking the position has more to do with the opportunity to pour into young, Godly men, than it has to do with the game of football itself.
