Lakewood Board Names Alum Ribar Next Head Football Coach
The Lakewood Board of Education at a special meeting on April 3 approved Mike Ribar as the next varsity head football coach for the Lakewood Rangers.
Ribar, who is a Lakewood High graduate, is the current Ranger varsity baseball head coach and will retain that position with the district.
“We’re very impressed with Mike’s resourcefulness, problem-solving skills and his ability to create a good feeder program as he has done with baseball and we look forward to him doing the same as foundation for a successful football program,” said Assistant Superintendent Kevin Bright, who was involved in the search process.
Ribar, who is employed by the Board of Education as a Behavioral Specialist at Lakewood City Academy, has a long history of coaching in various capacities in Lakewood. He has been a freshmen football coach since 2011 and helped lead his team to a West Shore Conference championship in 2012.
“During the interview process, we were impressed with Mike's knowledge of the game of football and his ability to orchestrate a comprehensive high quality program,” Bright said.
Ribar has been the varsity baseball coach since 2011 and has led the team in a turnaround that saw the Rangers go from winning four games in 2011 to 22 games last year. He was recognized for his leadership with the 2013 Coach of the Year Award from the Greater Cleveland Baseball Coaches Association.
Ribar also has coached the freshmen girls’ basketball team and had stints coaching high school girls’ softball and middle school basketball as well.
“Lakewood has always been my home and having this opportunity to coach where I played is a dream come true. I won a championship here 30 years ago and I hope to be able to do the same as the head football coach,” Ribar said. “We will do it "The Ranger Way" and try to instill in the young athletes what it takes to be a student/athlete.”
District officials look forward to Ribar developing new youth programs and encouraging cross-over athletes at the high school and middle school levels.
“We’re looking for more multi-sport athletes and greater participation in our programs overall and we think Mike is someone who can make that happen,” Bright said.
Ribar (Class of 1985) was a standout player in both football and baseball for Lakewood High School, earning the Lake Erie League MVP as quarterback in 1984 and a spot on the All Ohio Baseball team in 1985. He went on to play baseball for Kent State University.
Moving forward, Ribar hopes to bring back some of the enthusiasm he experienced during his winning years at LHS.
“One of my goals will be to get the student body, Alumni and the community excited about Friday night games. We will work hard to represent Lakewood High in the traditions of ‘The Ranger Way.’ “
