Every once in a while, Dale Ryan connects with someone who finds him very familiar, yet can’t quite place the face.
But it usually doesn’t take the person long to realize it’s not Ryan’s appearance they identify with.
It’s his voice.
Every Friday night each fall, Ryan and his crew climb into the press box overlooking Clarkston High School’s football field at Clarkston and get ready to keep several thousand fans informed and updated about every aspect of the game taking place on the lighted turf below.
As a self-described sports nut, Ryan keeps tabs on all the hometown teams: Pistons, Red Wings, and Tigers. He’s also a Michigan State fan, and although he admits it with a bit of disdain in his voice, Ryan admits he turns on the television every Sunday when the Lions kick off.
‘But just to see how bad they’re playing,? he said. ‘I’d really rather watch high school football or basketball than any other sport. These kids really want to achieve and they play their hearts out. The high school kids are the real thing.?
And he gets plenty of opportunity to watch the young players in action. Along with the fan-packed varsity football games, Ryan also announces seventh, eighth and ninth grade football, as well as junior varsity. When football season is over, he jumps in to announce both boys? and girls? basketball.
‘It’s kind of neat,? he said. ‘You get to watch these kids grow up and see what they become in five years.?
Although he had no formal broadcast training, Ryan has a made-for-the-airwaves voice that quickly earned him a ‘Voice of the Wolves? moniker.
It all started he said, when organizers were looking for someone to announce a 1988 Powder Puff game.
Ryan’s wife Linda, who was working as an aide at the school, asked if he was interested.
‘I said ‘oh sure I’d love to do it,?? he said. ‘So I got up there and had fun and when they needed someone to replace longtime announcer Bill Foster they had they asked me if I wanted to do it.?
And he’s been climbing into his seat in the press box, for the kids, the parents, and the community, he said, ever since.
With the help of two spotters’one for the home team and one for visitors’Ryan takes his responsibility to the fans and players seriously.
‘We’re not always right on the numbers,? he said. ‘Sometimes it gets a little scrambled down there and we’re trying to pick numbers out of the bottom of the pile.?
But, he said, the crowd is responsive and helps correct the occasional mistakes in identifying a player or pronouncing a name.
Lest anyone get the impression it’s all business in the press box, Ryan makes it clear the guys enjoy their time spent above the bleachers.
‘We have a lot of fun up there, we’re kidding around a lot,? he said, noting the atmosphere does get tense when the game gets tense. ‘We’re all fans and the guys like to talk and think about what’s going to happen on this next play, or if the referees make a bad call they’re up there yakking and yakking.?
It’s times like that, he said, when focus and concentration becomes imperative.
‘I have to sit there and keep my composure and try to keep my thoughts straight,? he said, ‘so out don’t come out on the loudspeaker with something these guys are saying.?
There have, said a grinning Ryan, been a few close calls.
All in all he said, it’s time well spent’although Linda, who married him 37 years ago, might hesitate to agree.
‘She understands I love her, and I love football,? he said, adding, perhaps with wisdom acquired over a long marriage, ‘but she comes first.?
The couple moved to Clarkston in 1974, and sent both boys through Clarkston Community Schools; Jeffery graduated in 1990, Eric in 1993.
Ryan retired from Sea-Ray boats in 1989, but stays busy managing a couple of apartment buildings for a friend, and recently began a part time position in business relations at T&C Federal Credit Union. He’s also a longtime member of the Clarkston Optimists Club.
Continued Next Week