HOWARD — When Ryan Powell took over as the East Knox boys basketball coach five years ago, he made it clear from the start things were going to be different.
He invested himself in the program, from working with players in the fifth and sixth grades to attending junior high games. He was demanding with his high school players, but they soon began to see he was rebuilding the culture of the program.
It didn’t take long for that work and effort to pay off, as Powell led the Bulldogs to respectability in just their second season together. An 11-12 campaign in 2018-19 improved to a 15-8 record the next year, the Bulldogs’ first season above .500 since 1995-96.
In just his fifth year, Powell became the winningest coach in school history, passing Paul Morrow after a victory over Cardington on Jan. 7. He is currently 53-48 at EK and has his Bulldogs (10-3 overall, 8-1 KMAC) in the thick of the Knox-Morrow Athletic Conference race, just one game behind league-leading Centerburg.
“It means a lot to his family, the assistant coaches, the players, the fans and the community (becoming the all-time winningest coach),” East Knox Athletic Director Scott Brickner said.
“Previously, in the history of the school, not many have stayed long-term. But to Ryan’s credit, he has. He’s really turned the program in a positive direction, which you can see with the success he’s had on the court. He’s built a family culture with the kids and he’s very well respected in the coaching community.”
After the victory against Cardington, the players and assistant coaches gave Powell the game ball to mark the occasion.
“That was pretty awesome (giving him the game ball after setting the record),” East Knox senior Dillon Moreland said. “He definitely deserved it. He’s been the reason why we’ve had so much success these past couple years.
“It was kind of rewarding and satisfying to give him the game ball after got his record win.”
The first year was a little rough, but things started clicking for the Bulldogs in his second season.
“For some of the older guys, it was difficult. He was a completely new guy and when he showed up, he was in charge,” said Weston Melick, who played four years for Powell before graduating last spring. “Each year, it felt like things got a little better. That’s a testament to coach Powell.
“He’s a pretty tough coach, he pushed us hard in practice. But, he wanted the best for us.”
While the holdover players from the previous staff may have struggled early getting used to Powell, the younger guys bought into his style from the beginning. Powell, who is also the physical education teacher at EK, showed he was there for those players from the start, watching their games, talking with them during gym class and around the school, and showing he was more than just a coach.
“He’s always been a good coach to look up to,” East Knox senior Peyton “Pete” Lester said. “When we were in the eighth grade, he came to all our home games, watching us, talking to us. Once we got into high school, our relationship for all us seniors started out amazing.
“I wouldn’t consider him just a coach, he’d be considered a friend in my book.”
Moreland agreed.
“He’s just been a guy that’s always been reliable for us as a coach and as a person,” Moreland said. “We trust him a lot, he trusts us a lot and we’ve known him for a while now, so it’s pretty cool to see how far we’ve come from a relationship standpoint with him.”
The basketball program is not only seeing success at the varsity level this year, it also has some of its highest numbers in many years.
EK has full teams at the varsity, junior varsity, eighth and seventh-grade levels, and even has enough players to field a freshman team, something that doesn’t happen at very many Division IV schools.
The family culture that Powell has built in just five short years is already paying dividends on the court, but it’s more than just wins. Powell’s impact on the players has been even more impressive.
“When I met the baseball coach at Muskingum, he reminded me of coach Powell,” Melick said. “I thought coach Powell made me pretty successful at East Knox. I thought I might as well try it here.
“Without him, I’d probably just be an average Joe.”
