At the end of the 2023 school year, Ty Branyon took a year off of teaching and coaching due to personal reasons. Starting this semester he is back, after deciding that one year is long enough being away from the Bowie community.
“I got out of education, not because I was unhappy with it,” Branyon said. “I missed it every day that I was gone, so I decided I had to come back.”
Branyon, who is a Bowie alumni, played football at Bowie during his high school career. He decided to come back and coach after playing for and graduating from Texas A&M.
“Football teaches us these lessons of commitment,” Brayon said. “It teaches us hard work and dedication, and I think if you give yourself a good foundation with those things, it gives you a chance to be successful”.
Being a coach was something that Branyon wanted to do from an early age. His first job out of college was coaching and he has been coaching for 18 years now. “Coach Branyon is one of the best coaches I ever had,” Junior Easton Lewis said. “I admire that he really connects with the team and builds that connection with us.”
Branyon coaches sports outside of football such as track, leading kids to try for success in many fields. While he was away Branyon had time to connect with his kids, coaching them in their preferred sports. After a year, he has returned to do what he believes he excels at, coaching football.
“Bowie is a special place to me,” Branyon said, “It feels like home to me, and I want the kids that go here to know how special this place is.” Branyon wants to build and rebuild relationships with his players. The impact his past coach made on him is what inspired him to pursue a career in education.
Whether it’s his students, or football players he believes that building relationships with them, ultimately helps in their success.
“He is always willing to go out of his way for others,” Senior Ryan Cormier said. “If a student or football player doesn’t understand something, he’ll sit down with them and talk it over until they understand how to run the right route or grasp the concept.”
Whether students who just met him or have known him for years, many believe that Branyon makes a positive impact on those around him. Branyon is thrilled to be a part of this fall’s football season and this spring’s track season. Coaching quarterbacks as offensive coordinator, he feels he gives it his all to help lead the players to a victory for the bulldawgs just like before.
“Enjoy every minute of it,” Branyon said, “Football is a game and sometimes you can let the pressure get to you but you always have to remember it’s a game and you need to have fun and work hard.”
