Levelland Loboette Head Softball Coach Ryan Miller is leaving the Levelland program after three years with the team.
As coaches continue to climb the ladder in their careers, Coach Miller says this move prioritizes his family more than being a simple career move.
“While I consider this a career move, that was not the sole thing I considered when choosing to step away,” explained Coach Miller. “The most important thing I considered was my family. By making this decision, I will be home more, I can watch my daughter play her sports in the fall along with my sons sports. It just free’s up a little bit more of my time to be with my family.”
Pending the approval of Frenship ISD’s School Board, Coach Miller will be taking his coaching talents to Frenship ISD where he will be the head softball coach for the Lady Tigers.
During his three years as the head coach, Miller has led the Loboetes to the playoffs every year.
“During these three years I have truly enjoyed my time here in Levelland,” said Miller. “I have no complaints about my time here and this decision was not taken lightly. There were many discussions with my wife about this and it took me some time to come to this decision.”
From the beginning as the head of the Loboette softball program, Coach Miller set his eyes on building the program and establishing a positive culture.
“You always here that you want to leave a place better than you found it and I hope I was able to achieve that within these three years,” said Coach Miller. “Records and statistics aside, my goal was to help turn these young ladies into successful individuals and instill things that they can take with them into the adult world and be successful.”
For Coach Miller, being a part of the program was exciting as he explained that everyone a part of the program was eager to learn and grow.
“These kids always came in wanting to be better and do things the right way,” said Coach Miller. “I truly enjoyed working with each one of them until the end. It makes things a whole lot easier when you have good kids.”
In terms of results on the field, the steady growth was apparent during Coach Miller’s first year at the helm.
In his first year, the Loboettes finished the season as the fourth seed in district with an overall record of 16-18-2 and a district record of 4-6.
The team would earn a spot in the playoffs and would eventually fall in the first round to Canyon after three games.
In his second year, Coach Miller led the team to a 25-9 record on the year while finishing second in district with a record of 8-3.
The Loboettes would punch their ticket to the playoffs once again but would lose in the first round once more against Brownwood after two games.
Last season, Coach Miller would have his best year with the team finishing 24-14, while finishing second in district with a 8-2 record.
The Loboettes would put together a solid playoff run in as they went two rounds.
The Loboettes began the first round by knocking off Glen Rose in three games.
The Loboettes would lose the first game 4-5, then rally the next day to take the next two games 11-10 and 7-4 to move on.
The Loboettes playoff run would then end in the second round after suffering losses to Krum.
“Something we always talked about was finding ways to win,” said Coach Miller. “There were times during games that it looked like we were out of it and then next thing you know we are back in with a fighters chance until the very end.”
Coach Miller provided an example being the first loss during last seasons playoff run against Glen Rose.
“Coming into the first game of the first round and suffering a loss against Glen Rose, we could have easily folded up shop and played flat the next day,” explained Coach Miller. “Those young ladies came back the next day with big hearts and were ready to fight back. We found a way to take those next two games and win the Bi-District round which is a hard thing to do when your already facing an 0-1 deficit.”
There have been similar examples through all three seasons under Coach Miller and he says his respect for all the kids he has coached within the program has never waivered given how much the program meant to each player.
“It has never been just a me thing when talking about the success of this program in whatever way it is determined,” said Coach Miller. “I had assistant coaches who were phenomenal in helping me in areas where I lacked. On top of that, we have to give all the success to the kids. They did all the work. They continued to come out every day. continued to put in the work and they deserve all the credit because at the end of the day it was them that found ways to win on the field and support one another.”
Stepping away from the Loboette program, Coach Miller wished the best of luck to those within the program.
“I want to wish those girls the best of luck moving forward,” said Coach Miller. “Moving forward I wish the best of luck to Levelland ISD and I think they got a fantastic hire in Coach Adrian Holland.
Moving forward, Coach Miller shared his excitement for the next chapter in his coaching career.
Pending the boards approval from Frenship ISD, Coach Miller will be making the jump to a 6A softball program compared to the 4A program of Levelland.
“I am really excited to get the ball rolling. It is going to be a new challenge for me but I welcome it with open arms,” said Coach Miller. “It is going to be a different setting and there are going to be a lot of people.”