COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (KMTV) — There’s a new face calling pitches for Iowa Western’s baseball team.
Ryan Cougill spent the past 10 years coaching at Yavapai College, leading them to a JUCO World Series championship in 2016 and an appearance the year before.
He takes command of a Reivers team that said goodbye to its 19-year head coach Mark Rardin, who is now coaching at Western Kentucky.
Cougill said it took some time to adjust to the change.
“I made a joke at some point, I think it was around September or October that I didn’t know where the toilet paper was,” he said with a laugh.
You might think taking over for a coach who earned 934 wins, three NJCAA D1 National Championships championships on 12 JUCO World Series appearances, three national Coach of the Year honors and more, would be intimidating.
Cougill said he doesn’t really think about it.
“The pressure is perhaps external with some things, but it’s not a realization for me,” he said. “There’s always pressure internally for me.”
Now it’s smooth sailing for him and the Reivers who already hit the 30-win mark for the season.
The players are seeing that impact both on the team and individually.
“Cougill’s helped me with my mental approach to the game,” sophomore C.J. Richmond said. “Being a D1 transfer coming to a JUCO can be very challenging, so he helped me a lot with that transition period.”
Cougill’s influence extends beyond the field as well.
“With learning how to play baseball the right way, he also teaches us how to be great young men,” freshman infielder A.J. Singer said.
“I’m not expecting you to get a 4.0, but I am expecting you to do your absolute best,” Cougill said. “I’m not expecting you to… enroll in the priesthood, but certainly have a priority on the program, a priority on your teammates and a priority on decision making.”
Most of all, he’s passing on his passion for the game
“Ultimately, I really enjoy being around my players,” Cougill said. “And so that’s a big perk for me with this job is we just coach, and we just develop, and therefore we’re able to place and move guys on.”
The players said Cougill is all business, but has been known to crack a joke here and there.
So just for fun, we asked them to do an impression of him.
Watch the video above to see that and Cougill’s response!
