The Miami of Ohio football program is known as the ‘Cradle of Coaches? ? and Ortonville resident Sam Ricketts can vouch for their reputation.
The Red Hawks, who play in the Mid-American Conference, can count legendary coaches Bo Schembechler and Woody Hayes, to name just two examples, among its coaching alumni.
Ricketts, 28, played for the Red Hawks from 1993-97 and was their starting quarterback for three years. He believes the Miami coaching staff helped make him the man he is today.
‘I had some outstanding coaches,? he said. ‘There was a lot of growing up during the five years I was there. You either competed and performed at a high level or someone else would play.
Ricketts played under several coaches who have moved on to larger college programs or the National Football League.
His head coach at Miami, Randy Walker, is now the head coach at Northwestern University. Ricketts? first quarterbacks coach, and the man who recruited him to Miami, Sean Watson, is now the offensive coordinator at the University of Colorado under head coach Gary Barnett. Miami’s offensive coordinator at the time, Kevin Wilson, is now the offensive coordinator for the University of Oklahoma under head coach Bob Stoops.
Ricketts? two other quarterbacks coaches at Miami have moved on to the National Football League and are now assisting two head coaches who are in their first year with their respective teams: Sean Payton, now the offensive coordinator under Bill Parcells with the Dallas Cowboys, and Ken Zampese, now the quarterbacks coach under Marvin Lewis with the Cincinnati Bengals.
Ricketts played at Springfield Northeastern High School in Springfield, OH. In addition to Miami, he was recruited by the University of Cincinnati and three other MAC schools: Ball State, Toledo and Bowling Green.
However, the Miami program won out in the end. ‘I really liked Coach Walker and I fell in love with the campus,? Ricketts said. ‘They have a good academic reputation.?
Among Ricketts? memorable games at Miami were one in 1995, when they defeated a Northwestern team that eventually went to the Rose Bowl and was ranked 3rd in the country, and his senior year in 1997, when the Red Hawks took on 13th-ranked Virginia Tech. The team’s best year during Ricketts? career also took place his senior year, as Miami finished with an 8-3 record.
During his career, Ricketts and the Red Hawks competed against several players who are now established in the NFL: Randy Moss (Minnesota Vikings), Chad Pennington (New York Jets), Charlie Batch (former Lions quarterback, currently with the Pittsburgh Steelers), Tom Brady (New England Patriots), Brian Griese (Miami Dolphins) and Charles Woodson (Oakland Raiders).
He said playing at a Division I college football program left him better prepared to deal with life’s challenges. Ricketts is currently a sales representative with Nucor, a steel company based in Charlotte, NC. He works for the company’s Crawfordsville, IN division.
‘I think you get very accustomed to competing,? he said. ‘The expectations are very high. You’re expected to perform consistently, and you’re held to account. That needs to be emphasized more, in my opinion. Businesses and schools need to have high expectations and be held accountable. I work for a very successful steel company, and, obviously, much is expected from us as employees.?
Ricketts moved to Ortonville three years ago when his previous employer relocated their sales office to Troy. His wife, Mandi, was looking for a teaching job and eventually found a fit with the Brandon school district. She currently teaches special education at Brandon High School.
The couple has one daughter, Mackenzie, 17 months, and is expecting another child.