Above and Beyond: Ryan Oliver ’20

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Utica Stories
Above and Beyond: Ryan Oliver ’20

Utica College linebacker Ryan Oliver ’20 doesn’t limit his good work to the playing field or the classroom. For years, Oliver has been committed to his volunteer work with the Haiti Rehabilitation Project, a non-profit created to serve people in need of physical and occupational therapy services in Haiti.

As part of the Haiti Rehabilitation Project, Oliver has traveled to the village of Gonaives to provide rehabilitation services to children who have cerebral palsy or other disabilities, and to teach local therapists techniques so that they can continue to provide services after they leave. Back in Utica, he participates in year-round fundraisers to help support the Project from afar.

Ryan Oliver at the 2019 Sugar Bowl — Oliver on the field at the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1, 2020

This fall, Oliver was honored for his efforts. The American Football Coaches' Association announced that Oliver had been selected to the 2019 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team®. The prestigious award is presented each year to a handful of college football players who are actively involved with a charitable organization group while also maintaining a strong academic standing. As part of the honor, Oliver is invited to New Orleans, Louisiana, to participate in a special community service project alongside his fellow honorees and Heisman Trophy winning quarterback, Tim Tebow. He will also be recognized at halftime of the 2020 Allstate Sugar Bowl on January 1, 2020.

Ryan Oliver has gone above and beyond in his community service ... he embodies everything that our program believes in.

In a ceremony at the Todd and Jen Hutton Sports and Recreation Center in September, UC’s head football coach Blaise Faggiano presented Oliver with the award. “Ryan Oliver has excelled on the field and in academics, and has gone above and beyond in his community service between all the things our program does, and then that extra initiative he has demonstrated with the Haiti Rehab Project,” said Faggiano. “He embodies everything that our program believes in.”