2023-2024: Indoors – threw in 5 indoor meets, opening the season at the JD Martin Invitational in
Norman, OK, placing 3 rd in the weight throw and 4 th in the shot put. At the Jarvis Scott Open at Texas
Tech, Ryan placed 6 th in the WT with a new PR of 58-6/17.83 and he concluded the indoor season by
placing 5 th in the WT at the WAC Championship, thus scoring at his first ever conference championship.
Outdoors – threw in 7 meets. Started the season with a 3 rd place finish in the hammer throw at ACU’s
Wes Kittley Invitational. Rylan placed 4 th in the HT at 3 meets – the Masked Rider Open at Texas Tech,
the David Noble Relays in San Angelo (where he launched his PR throw of 185-3/56.47) and the Joe
Gillespie Invitational in Stephenville. Rylan would top off a successful season placing 5 th in the HT at the
WAC Championship in Orem, UT.

2022-2023: Indoors – redshirted indoors, but still competed in 2 meets at Texas Tech unattached. In the
TTU Jarvis Scott, he placed 6 th  in the shot put and 10 th  in the weight throw. Outdoors – redshirted
outdoors as well, but competed in 4 meets unattached. At the HSU Invite, Rylan won the shot put, was
3 rd  in the hammer and 4 th  in the discus. Picking up the HT quickly, he also placed 5 th  in the Wes Kittley
Invitational and 9 th  in the TTU Masked Rider Invitational. 

Before ACU: At Sanger HS, Rylan lettered in both football and basketball, but it was in T&F that he made
his biggest mark. In his senior year, at the 4A state meet he won the discus and placed 4 th  in the shot
put, as well as during his junior year, he placed 2 nd  in the 4A DT. As a senior, Rylan was ranked #168 in
the U.S. in the discus, after ranking #127 in that same event as a junior. His HS bests were 174-1 in the
discus and 53-2 in the shot put.

Personal: Graduated in 2022 from Sanger HS as a member of the National Honor Society. His parents
are Rocky and Monica Smart. His father, Rocky Smart, was an all-conference offensive lineman for
Hardin Simmons. Rylan’s sister, Ashlynn Smart, was a 4-year letter-winner at UNT in T&F and as part of
the UNT T&F team, competed in the hammer throw at ACU in 2019 at the Wes Kittley Invitational and
2021 in the ACU Last Chance meet. At ACU, Rylan is a Sport Management major.

What is your favorite thing about ACU? The way that ACU has always felt like home.