For those dues paying Ohio State Alumni Club members, there is a really nice article (the cover story) on Ryan Lukens in the July/August Alumni Magazine. Check it out.
I tried to scan it; however, it is 8 pages and the file got way too big to post. Maybe someone else is smarter than I am and can link it here for everyone to read/enjoy.
Here is "More On Ryan Lukens"; however, it is not the cover story mentioned above.
Two of a Kind: Father and Son Reflect on Their Coaches
To this day, one of Bill Lukens' favorite pastimes involves getting together with former Buckeye football players and telling stories about their coach-Woody Hayes.
"Woody was a colorful guy," said Bill Lukens, who lettered at guard for Ohio State from 1974 through 1976. "But it gets overlooked that he was a father figure and a teacher and a friend. He was more than a football coach and I think most of the guys I played with feel the same way."
Lukens son, Ryan, has a similar opinion of his college football coach-Jim Tressel. Ryan Lukens joined the Buckeye football program as a walk-on three years ago and has shared some of the same unique experiences his father had in the 1970s.
Both agree that they loved their time at Ohio State and both point to their coaches as one of the big reasons for their enjoyment. They also are ready to let fans in on a secret-although Tressel and Hayes have decidedly different public personas, they are more alike than you'd think.
"Woody didn't care about anything except his team," Bill Lukens said. "He would do anything for his team, and I see that in Tressel.
"Woody shaped my whole life. He took boys and turned them into men, and I feel fortunate that Ryan has a similar type of coach. I know that [Tressel] cares more about Ryan as a person than as a football player. That's how Woody was."
The Lukens' say that both coaches fostered the idea of a team as a family. Even as an unrecruited walk-on, Ryan Lukens said he has never felt like he was a second-class citizen with the Buckeyes.
"With coach Tressel, if you are on the team you are on the team," Ryan Lukens said. "He knows everyone, whether you are a walk-on or a starter. I remember that first year being amazed that he knew every kid, their hometown, their high school, their high school coach, everything. He's just amazing with that stuff."
Tressel also has a keen appreciation for Buckeye history and was well aware of the contributions Bill Lukens made to Ohio State football.
But even Bill Lukens, a former team captain, was amazed at the level of kindness Tressel showed his son prior to the annual Captains' Breakfast two years ago.
"All former captains are invited to that breakfast and they get to spend the morning before the Michigan game with the guys on the travel team," Bill Lukens said. "Only guys on the travel team get to go, and Ryan hadn't been on the travel team all year.
"Then, all of a sudden, Ryan was on the traveling team that week. The only reason for him to be on the traveling team that week was that so he and I could be at the Captains Breakfast together. That was pretty special, but it doesn't surprise me. Coach Tressel is just a special guy. He and Woody understand what it's all about."
Entire article:
Ohio State Alumni: Two of a Kind: Father and Son Reflect on Their Coaches
