Mark optimistic about 2023 season

By Sam Waller

Injury kept Ryan Mark from having the kind of season he wanted in 2022, at Austin College, but it didn’t keep him from earning postseason academic honors.

Mark, a 2022 Albany graduate, saw no playing time as a freshman because of shoulder and back injuries. As he goes through this year’s preseason football camp with the Kangaroos, he’s looking to put into practice lessons learned.

“Last year really put into perspective how different it is from Albany,” Mark said. “Albany definitely prepares you better than a lot of other schools in terms of how to handle being in a new situation. Last year also taught me how to take care of my body better for this year.”

Mark suffered a torn labrum, which eventually required surgery to repair, during the first week of practice last season. He tried to play through it and earned a spot on the travel squad for special teams, but a back injury ended his season.

“I was still at every practice,” he said. “I tried to tough it out for most of the season; I just wasn’t 100 percent.”

Mark was working at defensive end when Austin College began preseason practices Thursday, Aug. 10. The Kangaroos open the season Saturday, Sept. 2 against Nebraska Wesleyan.

Mark has yet to be cleared to play, but he is optimistic about his chances this season and hopes to be ready for the first game.

“I’m looking at getting better, and hopefully I can help the team any way I can,” he said.

Despite never getting on the field as a freshman, Mark got the job done in the classroom, earning academic all-conference honors from the American Southwest Conference.

“The academic part was the No. 1 reason I chose Austin College,” he said. “You’ve got to use your time wisely.”

He said balancing academics with football was a lot of extra work.

“There were a lot of late nights up studying and getting all the homework done,” he said. “We’d get out of football practice between 7:00 and 8:00, go straight to the ‘caf’ to eat. You’d get home around 9:00 and still have to get all the studying done.”

With a year of experience to rely on, Mark is looking to add success on the field to his academic honors.

“Even just in camp, you learn how to prepare your body to recover and be able to get to that practice the next day,” he said. “Even though I’m injured, I’m still working out with the team as long as there’s no contact. You know what to eat and not eat, how to prepare your food, get all the electrolytes you need to recover, and how to go to the training room for treatment to prepare for the next day.”