Courtesy of Oregon Media Services
Oregon seniors Ryan Schmid (left) and Joey Harrington walked with their graduating class in June and will be done once the season ends.
Dangling from his neck is a tiny gold cross. Sitting quite snug upon his head, turned backward, is a sweat-stained Denver Broncos hat.
More often than not, if you see Ryan Schmid, he’s wearing both items — unless it’s on the playing field on Saturdays or in church on Sundays. In those cases, the hat’s got to go, but otherwise he’s loyal to it.
This hat has been above his forehead for years. Even before he went to high school in Lake Oswego, he had the hat. All through the prep years and into the college days, the white (now partially brown) Broncos cap has remained perched atop his head.
And that cross is always just a few inches below.
“I feel naked without them,” Schmid said.
The two items are the perfect barometers to get to know and understand who Schmid is and what he stands for.
If all you know of him is his 6-foot-4,282-pound frame blocking on the Oregon offensive line for the “stars” of the Ducks, then you know exactly what he wants you to know.
He notices the kind of constant attention that Joey Harrington, Maurice Morris and Rashad Bauman get around town, and he doesn’t want any of that.
“I can’t imagine how the household-name guys do it,” Schmid said. “Everyone knows exactly who you are anywhere you go. That’s one of the reasons I love being an offensive lineman. Nobody knows who you are and people stare at you only because you’re big.”
But look closer at Ryan Schmid.
See the college-aged group he leads on Sundays at Calvary Fellowship on West Amazon.
See the grade point average of 3.95 in business administration that led him to be honored as a first-team Verizon Academic All-America selection last season.
See the unmatchable work ethic on the practice field that sometimes stops teammates in their tracks to marvel at him.
See the weights being lifted over and over in the weight room, including a 375-pound bench press, before offensive line coach Neal Zoumboukos has to practically drag him away.
And see the devotion in his eye when he speaks about what he plans on doing when his football days end after this season.
“I want to do urban ministry and reach as many people as I can through that,” Schmid said. “I felt that if I were to be Christian, then it needed to be something I would do full-time. I had a strong conviction that I would use my business and leadership skills I’ve learned through school and football for ministry.”
Rock of faith
There are many sides to Schmid the person, but faith is his backbone and where his loyalty runs deepest. In his jar of life, faith is the biggest rock; everything else fits in around it.
“Through my faith, I’m given a constant that allows me to always have joy and peace,” Schmid said. “A lot of times, especially in football, it’s really easy to get down and really easy to get high. The highs and lows of a season still get to you, but faith helps put it into perspective.”
For example, there was no Duck more disappointed than Schmid on Oct. 20 when Oregon had been beaten by Stanford, 49-42, for its only loss yet this season. What made the defeat even more painful was that the Ducks had taken a 14-point lead into the fourth quarter and lost on their own turf during Homecoming weekend.
Most likely dashed that afternoon was Oregon’s legitimate national championship dreams. So while the loss stung, and still does for Schmid, his maturity and viewpoint on life led him to see the bright side of the situation.
“When you have a goal for over a year and it’s just suddenly gone, that’s a shocking blow,” Schmid said about reaching the Rose Bowl. “But then you take a step back and realize that you can learn a great deal from it, if you look at it the right way.
“So rather than just dwell on how horrible that loss felt, my faith helps turn it into a positive,” he said.
Becoming a Duck
Schmid has clearly been a positive influence on the Ducks. The Lake Oswego High graduate entered the Oregon program as a redshirt freshman in 1997. During his first playing year in 1998, while participating in seven games, he made a strong enough impression on Zoumboukos that the coach knew he had someone special on his hands.
“When he began playing, it became very clear that he was going to play a significant role,” Zoumboukos said. “And as time has gone on, his role to our group has been absolutely immense. He’s been a leader since a young age and has been every bit as valuable to this program as Joey Harrington has.”
Indeed, in the fall of 1999, when Harrington burst onto the scene with comeback victories, Schmid was starting most of the games on the offensive line. The next year, Schmid started at center and left guard, a position he’s solidified this season.
His partner through it all has been senior Jim Adams, who described his buddy as an “air traffic controller” on the playing field.
“He knows all the calls and has a better grasp of this offense than even Joey at times,” Adams said. “Because when Joey messes up, Ryan’s the one that turns backwards and corrects him.”
Speaking of Harrington, it surprised Schmid a great deal to learn that Harrington listed him as someone he’s learned the most from.
“Really? That’s an incredible compliment, especially coming from Joe,” Schmid said.
So what was it about Schmid that stood out in Harrington’s eye?
“His work ethic,” Harrington said. “I thought I knew how to work hard, and then I saw Ryan Schmid. The way he carries people every day and how all his hard work rubs off on us.”
A family work ethic
Schmid doesn’t consider himself any more talented or smarter or more dedicated than anyone else he’s around. To him, he’s just following in the footsteps of his father, Mike Schmid. As a child, Schmid would watch his dad go to work all day as a civil engineer and then come and immediately start working around the house.
“He doesn’t understand how to relax,” Schmid said.
Schmid never heard his father complain about any of the chores he was doing or about the long hours he was putting in at the office. He considers his dad to be an “incredible role model” and sees himself as being a reflection of Mike.
One house project that Mike Schmid will probably have to soon start on is a separate room for all of the Duck paraphernalia that Schmid’s mother, Sue, keeps buying. The two proud parents loyally attend every game and will be there Saturday to watch their oldest son compete in his final game at Autzen Stadium against Oregon State.
“With 100,000 people, I could probably still hear my mom. She gets really into it,” Schmid said. “She’s got the pompoms and that stupid little Duck whistle that everybody blows. Really, if there’s Duck stuff, she probably has it.”
While his parents are a strong influence on Schmid, they didn’t push him into being so involved with Christianity. Schmid found that on his own when he moved away from the comforts of his home.
Finding God
As a freshman in college, he turned to Christ. And it wasn’t one of “those voices from heaven calls,” as he put it, that was his one defining moment. It was more of a gradual process.
“I just made a decision to do that, and as I pursued it, it became more and more real,” Schmid said. “It was something I needed. I just really craved it.”
Soon, he was involved with campus organizations such as Athletes in Action and Campus Crusade for Christ. He loved the interaction he had with other people involved and how alive he felt when he read
the Bible and let Christianity take full rein of his actions.
But there was one moment that really reaffirmed his belief in Christ and his belief in his ability to be an outspoken leader. It occurred in April 2000, in a week that will be remembered on the University campus as “Ryan Week.”
“I don’t think any of us expected it to blow up
the way it did,” Schmid said. “That was a crazy, crazy week. Man, that was nuts.”
Do you agree?
A couple of weeks prior, the words “Do you agree with Ryan?” began popping up on classroom chalkboards. They were written in chalk on sidewalks along 13th Avenue. Fliers with the message were passed out around campus and placed on tables in the Erb Memorial Union.
Students began wondering who this “Ryan” was and what they were supposed to agree with. Rumors ran rampant. While sitting in his Writing 122 class, Jeff Schmid had to laugh when his older brother’s name was being tossed around the room in off-base opinions as to what the message was about.
So finally, on Friday of “Ryan Week,” Ryan Schmid stepped into the EMU Amphitheater, grabbed a microphone and answered everyone’s questions. He had been chosen by Campus Crusade as the generic name to use that week to provide a platform to raise the issue of spirituality and Christianity.
“We just wanted people to at least think about Christianity and decide ‘yes’ or no because you can easily go through college and never be faced with that question,” Schmid said. “We didn’t want to make anybody angry, but I think anytime you make Christianity an issue, some people are going to get angry.”
His teammates had his back, though. Schmid was surprised at how supportive his fellow Ducks were and of how many showed up on that Friday afternoon to hear him give his testimony of how he became involved with Christ.
“A lot of guys on the team who don’t claim to be Christian were asking about it and interested in it, and were like, ‘Hey, that’s really cool,’” Schmid said.
But that doesn’t mean he doesn’t get ribbed now and then about it, especially with that “Do You Agree With Ryan?” bumper sticker still hanging in Adams’ locker.
“I get teased about it, but it’s all in good humor,” Schmid said. “But really, that whole experience taught me a lot. It was a big challenge for me to be in the spotlight like that and have my picture in the paper.”
A nine-year-old hat
If Schmid had his way, the spotlight would stay on anyone but him. He’s just a self-described “country boy” who feels that he’s been blessed with certain skills and that to not make the most of those gifts would be a shame.
“The reason he is so successful on the field is that his life is so in order off the field,” fullback Josh Line said.
As Schmid’s final regular season game nears, the sore feet, knees, neck and shoulder aren’t as noticeable. He says he has laid awake at night this week thinking about the Civil War and hoping that the game will be one to remember.
He moved from Colorado Springs, Colo., to Lake Oswego in 1990 and remembers talking trash with his sixth grade classmates about his Colorado State Rams beating the Ducks in the Freedom Bowl. But soon, as he grew up in the state, he began to get into the Civil War and into the Oregon Ducks.
Now, Schmid’s time with the program is almost up and he has no regrets. More than any one game or great play, as he leaves the program he’ll take with him the stories. He’ll take with him all of his teammates and the relationships he’s made through football.
And, with the cross always around his neck, he’ll still take with him that Denver Broncos hat that he knows “Coach Zoom hates so much.”
Schmid can tell what you’re thinking. Isn’t it about time he went out and treated himself to a clean, never-been-worn Broncos cap? After all, it has been about nine years with the same one.
“Oh, people have bought me new ones and I won’t wear them,” Schmid said. “I like this one too much.”
Whether it’s with faith or a dirty NFL hat, unequivocal loyalty is his common denominator.