From Character to Service: How Youth Sports Shaped My Leadership — COL Ryan T. Kranc

In 1992, 2-4-1 Co-Founders Steve and Kerry Boyle moved to Seattle and soon after, Steve took one of his first coaching jobs as head coach of the freshman soccer team at O’Dea High School. Among the players on that team was Ryan Kranc – a young man who would go on to dedicate his life to service as a career officer in the U.S. Army. On this 4th of July, we’re honored to share this powerful guest blog from COL Ryan T. Kranc, as he reflects on the impact of youth sports, the values instilled at O’Dea, and the lasting influence of Coach Boyle on his leadership journey over the last three decades.

In the halls and fields of O’Dea High School in Seattle, Washington, I first encountered the foundational elements of leadership: character, faith, and service. As a young athlete playing four years of soccer—three as a letterman and one culminating in a state championship appearance—I learned more than just tactics and technique. I began forming the ethical and personal bedrock that would later shape my career as a U.S. Army officer.

O’Dea is more than a school. As a Christian Brothers of Ireland institution, it operates under a clear mission: “O’Dea High School is committed to developing our students into young men of character, faith, and service.” That mission is not just posted on the walls—it is lived through every practice, classroom discussion, and locker room conversation. It is enforced in subtle, consistent ways: how we treated opponents, how we responded to setbacks, how we honored commitment.

My freshman year soccer coach was Steve Boyle. Coach Boyle instilled in us a sense of team, community, accountability, and responsibility. Those lessons over 30 years ago still resonate and have impact today. They framed how I’ve lived my life and how I ultimately learned to lead in the Army.

James Kerr, in Legacy, outlines 15 leadership lessons drawn from the All Blacks, the most successful sports team in history. Though the All Blacks and a high school soccer team may seem worlds apart, many of Kerr’s principles resonated deeply with my early experiences, mimic what Coach Boyle taught us, and continue to echo in my service today. These principles—humility, character, teamwork, and legacy—aren’t just rugby ethos; they’re universal truths for building elite teams, whether on the field or the battlefield.

Humble Beginnings: “Sweep the Sheds”

Kerr’s first lesson, “Sweep the Sheds,” describes how even the most senior All Blacks clean the locker room after a game. No one is above service. This humility, learned early at O’Dea, still guides how I lead.

As a high school player, I wasn’t just expected to perform in the field—I was expected to clean up equipment, support younger players, and model the standards. Coach Boyle was big on making sure the group began and finished together. That same ethos has carried forward into Army leadership. The best leaders I’ve served with and tried to emulate are those who never consider themselves too important to do the small things—checking on a soldier’s family situation, eating last, or maintaining equipment. These small acts convey a deep respect for people and the profession, reinforcing that leadership is a privilege, not a platform.

Building Character: “Better People Make Better All Blacks”

Kerr reminds us that character underpins capability. Coach Boyle and O’Dea placed heavy emphasis on developing young men of integrity, especially in competitive environments. We were taught that winning without honor is hollow. This idea of moral authority—doing what is right even when it is not easy—forms the backbone of trustworthy leadership.

In Army reconnaissance and cavalry units, where the operational tempo is high and the margin for error is slim, character is non-negotiable. When you’re making decisions that affect lives, your subordinates must trust your intentions as much as your competence. That trust starts with character. Just as Coach Boyle and O’Dea made clear that our behavior off the field mattered as much as our performance on it, the Army expects its officers to embody values in every setting, public or private.

Team First: “Whānau”

Whānau is a Māori word meaning “to be born” or “give birth.” In Māori culture, this translates to the concept of family, teammates, and team. It asserts that ego corrodes cohesion. In high school sports, you learn quickly that talent alone doesn’t win championships—teams do. At O’Dea, those who prioritized individual accolades over the team quickly found themselves isolated. Coach Boyle made it clear: the team came first, always.

This lesson applies directly to all organizations and particularly those I served with in combat, relying on tight-knit teams executing complex tasks under pressure. In combat or training, you don’t want the most talented soldier—you want the most reliable teammate. Ego disrupts trust, and trust is the currency of mission success. As a commander, I’ve seen firsthand how enforcing standards around humility and teamwork—not just performance—elevates a unit’s cohesion and resilience.

Develop the Whole Person: “Leave the Jersey Better Than You Found It”

Perhaps the most poignant theme in Legacy is the idea that players are stewards of something greater than themselves. At O’Dea, this was made clear to us through rituals and mentorship. We were not just playing soccer—we were upholding a tradition. We were expected to improve not just our skills, but the program itself.

In same cases we made our own rituals. Coach Boyle, a fan of NFL running back Walter Payton’s work ethic, developed a conditioning drill called the “Daily Dozen.”  Relying mostly on partner assisted exercises, one of the central events of the Daily Dozen was a high climb modeled after Payton’s off-season ritual of running up hills with a log on his back. While we didn’t have logs, we did have each other (in retrospect I’m not sure we’d be allowed to do this today 😂). One of our teammates, Zach Westphal, was all in for the team but struggled with the hill. It was our responsibility to help Zach conquer the hill every day. Sadly, Zach lost his battle with Multiple Sclerosis in 2017, but Zach would call me every Memorial Day and Veterans Day for almost two decades – a new ritual – and we’d reminisce about a small hill at Interbay Field in Seattle that we conquered every day.

In the Army, the jersey is the unit. Every command, every staff position, is temporary stewardship. Your responsibility is to leave the unit—and its people—better than you found them. This belief has influenced how I approach leader development. I do not want leaders who only succeed during their own watch. I want leaders who build systems, mentor successors, and elevate others. That belief was planted at O’Dea and reaffirmed with every step of my career. And it’s people like Coach Boyle and teammates like Zach whose impacts made the concept of stewardship and constant improvement indelible impacts on my life.

Resilience and Pressure: “Embrace Expectations”

O’Dea’s competitive environment meant that pressure came early and often—from big games to classroom standards. We were expected to rise to the occasion, not shrink from it. Kerr notes how the All Blacks embrace the “weight of the jersey” and turn expectation into fuel. For me, my dad went to O’Dea and the understanding of what the school meant and the responsibility to maintain a positive legacy was never lost upon me. In the Army, pressure is a constant. Whether it’s leading soldiers through combat zones or navigating planning at the strategic level, embracing pressure rather than avoiding it is key to performance.

This mindset was forged on the soccer field during cold Seattle nights with everything on the line. That ability to focus, to rise, to lead under pressure—it started there and matured over decades as I traded one uniform for another.

Service Over Self: “Be a Good Ancestor”

Faith and service are core to O’Dea’s identity. We were consistently reminded that success meant nothing if it wasn’t used in service to others. Kerr’s metaphor of being a good ancestor—leaving something better for the next generation—aligns directly with Army values and long-term leadership.

Over 24 years in uniform, my proudest moments have been watching former students and Soldiers I led grow into exceptional leaders, knowing I had some part in shaping their path. That sense of stewardship began in a high school environment that prioritized service to community and each other.

Final Reflections

James Kerr writes, “What is the legacy you want to leave behind?” For me, that legacy traces directly back to the values instilled at O’Dea: character, faith, and service. High school soccer taught me about winning, yes—but more importantly, it taught me about the discipline, humility, and teamwork required to lead others.

These same values have guided me as a officer in the U.S. Army, leading in environments that demand both moral and physical courage. From mentoring young troopers to commanding a brigade, I’ve found that the seeds planted in my youth—on a field with teammates, under the guidance of coaches and teachers who believed in something greater—have continued to shape the kind of leader I strive to be.

In a profession centered on people, values matter. Coach Boyle and O’Dea taught me mine. The Army refined them. And the responsibility now is to pass them on.