When you listen to Wisconsin Badger coach Bo Ryan talk, he very rarely misses an opportunity to discuss his days back in Chester, Pennsylvania, where he grew up.
Last night, Ryan was inducted into the Delaware County Chapter of the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame.
The Chester native was a standout basketball, football and baseball player at Chester High School. He went on to star as a high-scoring guard at Wilkes (Pa.) University before taking his first head coaching position at nearby Sun Valley High School. En route to earning Delaware County Coach of the Year honors, Ryan took his 1976 Sun Valley team to the state tournament for the first time in school history.
Delaware County turned out to be the launching pad for what has turned into one of the most successful coaching runs in the state of Wisconsin's history. Ryan went on to become the all-time winningest coach in NCAA Division III history, claiming four national championships at UW-Platteville. After two seasons at UW-Milwaukee, Ryan has led the Badgers to three Big Ten regular season titles and three NCAA Sweet 16 appearances in seven seasons.
Bo talks about Chester and his old school playing days so much, you'd think he works for the Chester, Pennsylvania Visitors and Convention Bureau. But in reality, Ryan is simply extremely proud of where he came from and despite his great success, he'll never forget where it all started.