Bryan Snyder is entering his first season with the Sun Devil wrestling program after being selected by Head Coach Shawn Charles as his head assistant coach in July 2009. An athletic and academic standout at the University of Nebraska (1999-02), Snyder was brought in to not only work with the Sun Devils on the mats, but to also assist with the program's goals of academic achievement off the mats.
"Bryan is going to help me bring together all the pieces that we need to make our program very successful," Charles said. "He coached at Harvard as well and academics is big on his list. I know he is going to help make sure that our wrestlers are doing the things academically that we need to do to be among the top programs in our sport and across the board. We are going to go after wrestlers that can get the job done in the classroom as well as on the mat and he will be a big part of that. He also is from one of the more prestigious high schools in the country (Easton High School in Pennsylvania) and I feel he will be able to help us attract some of the East Coast talent that will continue to help the Sun Devil program rise to the top once again."
During his time in Lincoln, Snyder crafted one of the top careers in Husker history as he collected four All-America honors, four Big XII Conference championships and competed in three NWCA All-Star matches. Wrestling at 157-pounds, Snyder finished fourth at the national meet as a freshman before taking fifth in his sophomore campaign. He followed those showings up with a pair of national runner-up finishes to close out his career. Overall, he went 136-11 in his four years and posted a 69-4 mark in dual action, with both win totals standing as the second-best all-time at NU. Snyder also posted win totals of 30 or more three times in his career, including a 43-3 mark as a sophomore, which stands as the second-most wins in a single-season at NU. His career winning percentage (.925) ranks as the best all-time in NU history while his winning percentage in dual competition (.945) stands as the second-best all-time.
The Student-Athlete of the Year in 2002 at NU, Snyder also garnered numerous awards for his academic prowess. During his first two seasons (1999 and 2000), he was selected to the second team for both the NWCA All-Academic and Academic All-Big XII squads before earning first team recognition on both in his final two campaigns. Following his senior season, Snyder graduated from NU with a pair of degrees (Sociology and Communication Studies).
With his degrees earned, Snyder left Lincoln and accepted the position of assistant coach at Harvard and worked with the Crimson for one season (2002-03) before returning to NU. For the next two seasons, Snyder served as a graduate assistant coach for the Huskers while working towards his Masters in Sociology, which he earned in 2005. From there, he enrolled at the University of Colorado and has been pursuing his Ph.D. in Sociology.
Prior to his collegiate career, Snyder was highly successful with one of the more prestigious high school programs in the nation as he wrestled for Easton High School in Easton, Pa. During his prep career, Snyder accumulated a 112-12 overall record and was a place-winner at the Pennsylvania state high school meet on three occasions. The 1997 state champion, Snyder was a highly-recruited student-athlete and ranked among the Top 10 nationally during his senior season.
The Snyder File
• Four-time All-American for Nebraska at 157 pounds (1999-02)
• Two-time NCAA finalist (2001, 2002)
• Four-time Big XII Conference champion
• Three-time NWCA All-Star participant
• Career 136-11 overall and 69-4 dual records (#2 on NU wins lists)
• Career winning percentage leader at NU (.925)
• Four-time NWCA All-Academic
• Four-time Academic All-Big XII selection
• Graduated from NU in 2002 (two degrees: Sociology, Communication Studies) and in 2005 (Master's in Sociology)
• Working toward Ph.D. in Sociology at Colorado