Ryan Olson enters his sixth season at Grand Valley State and his third as the wide receiver coach. He was on staff for the 2020 season that was canceled due to covid and coached the running backs during the 2021 and 2022 campaigns.
Olson's 2024 receiving unit was led by All-GLIAC performer Kyle Nott and fellow seniors Cody Tierney and Darrell Johnson. This group averaged 7.9 yards per attempt and 14.9 yards per catch.
Olson's 2023 wide receiver unit claimed three All-GLIAC honors as underclassmen, hauling in a combined 130 receptions for 2,044 yards and 18 touchdowns. The group excelled in all-purpose play, evidenced by 3,769 all-purpose yards. Olson tutored a group running backs that combined for 3,782 rushing yards and 46 touchdowns yards in 2021 and 2022. Tariq Reid and Bryce Young-Walls earned All-GLIAC honors and led a group that ranked among the national leaders in yards per game and yards per carry. Prior to his arrival at GVSU Olson served as offensive coordinator at Quincy University during the 2019 season.
Olson spent the 2018 season at Eastern Michigan University where he served as an Offensive Graduate Assistant working primarily with the wide receivers. Olson worked under head coach Chris Creighton and offensive coordinator Aaron Keen as Eastern Michigan finished their season in the 2018 Raycom Media Camellia Bowl in Montgomery, Alabama; just the fourth bowl game in school history. The EMU Eagles finished 2018 with 20 receiving touchdowns, 2,911 receiving yards, and just four interceptions in 2018, with one receiver, Blake Banham, being selected as a member of the All-MAC 3rd team.
Prior to Eastern Michigan, Olson spent three seasons as the wide receivers’ coach at Minnesota State, Mankato. In 2017, the Maverick wide receivers caught 180 passes for 2,488 yards and 34 touchdowns. Junior Shane Zylstra, who led the MSU receiving corps with 861 receiving yards, matched an MSU single-season record with 15 touchdown catches. Zylstra, who received All-NSIC First Team honors, was also named the NSIC Offensive Player of the Year and a regional finalist for the Harlon Hill Award. Ty Dennis also claimed All-NSIC Second Team honors for the third consecutive year as a senior in 2017.
During his second season at Mankato in 2016, Ty Dennis was again named Second Team All-NSIC for the Mavericks under Olson’s tutelage as he led the receiving corps with 39 catches for 630 receiving yards and 8 touchdowns. The MSU receivers as a whole caught 157 balls for 2,123 yards and 24 touchdowns.
In his first season at Minnesota State, the Maverick receiving corps caught a total of 194 passes for 2,752 yards and 22 touchdowns. Sophomore Ty Dennis led MSU receivers with 793 receiving yards and six touchdown catches. Both Dennis and senior Bryce Duncan would go on to receive All-NSIC accolades during Olson's first season at MSU, and junior Brent Esser was named Honorable Mention All-NSIC.
Olson played four seasons of both football and basketball at Simpson College, where he competed as a wide receiver in football and as a guard/forward on the basketball team. During his senior season, the Storm football team would post a 7-3 record, which was the team’s best record in six seasons.
Olson graduated from Simpson College in the spring of 2014 with a B.A. in sports administration, as well as minors in business management and coaching. Olson completed his Masters degree in sport and exercise psychology from Minnesota State in 2018.
Olson and his fiance, Kate, are the proud parents of son Charlie (6).
