Bucknell University Athletics
Fall Charge -- Matt Ryckman (Men's Water Polo)
Return to FALL CHARGE page and read more letters.
Dear Bucknell Men's Polo Community,
My name is Matt Ryckman and I am a student in the College of Engineering Class of 2025 and a member of the men’s water polo team. I applied to college in the age of COVID-19, and truth be told, the first time I saw campus was the day I walked onto the pool deck to start one of Coach McBride’s notorious Hell Weeks. At the time, I felt like a stranger to the University. I had heard nothing but good news from alumni and parents, yet I still found myself asking random people simple questions such as, “Excuse me, but where is the pool?”
My first week on campus was a blur between test sets, ice baths, and food, a lot of food. I had come from a small boarding school in Hartford, Connecticut called Loomis Chaffee, where I had taken a step back from the top gun of athletics in Greenwich, Connecticut to focus on my studies and find something I had never known before - balance.
Now, I found myself walking into a level of water polo I couldn’t even comprehend. With people who had traveled from all over the world, who spoke languages I had never heard, to play water polo. Between heavy conditioning early in the mornings and classes that made me question if I ever even went to school, I was being pushed way out of the bubble I had grown up in.
But I wasn’t alone. I was amazed at how many student-athletes were in the same boat as me, rubbing the sleep out of their eyes as they left the Kenneth Langone Athletics & Recreation Center and hurried to their 8:00 a.m. classes. On this campus in the middle of relatively nowhere, there was a herd of people who had found a state of equilibrium while walking through the fire.
I wanted to be like these people. They had unwavering discipline. Attitudes that could concur with any foreseeable challenges. Bonds that were as close as brothers. COVID had made me soft. I breezed through senior year taking classes at home and never really understood what I was truly capable of. I needed my eyes to be opened and Bucknell was that catalyst.
When people ask about my college experience, I tell them that I have changed more in the past two years than in my entire childhood. Don’t take it lightly when I say that Bucknell is life-changing. The faculty and coaches are what make this campus the most critical four years in adult development. They know when to push, training individuals to break through their self-imposed limits. They also know how to support, and effectively guide students to the state of equilibrium I so desired.
When times get tough, and they will get tough, Bucknell provides empathetic support across all fields. Some teachers and advisors are willing to stay after hours to tediously dissect educational problems and avidly provide help when needed. There are genius student tutors who aced the classes you can't wrap your head around and who are developing their own teaching methods to help others. Some coaches know you better than yourself. Nutritionists, doctors, physical therapists, the list goes on. There is support for everyone, all with the same goal. To see you succeed.
I no longer run away from challenges. I embrace them with a smile. If I can fight a 6’4” Turk weighing in at 230 lbs. in the water daily, I am sure that anything I am given at a desk or in the real world won’t punch as hard as him. Where else can you get that?
My remarkable experiences at Bucknell have been made possible through the generosity and support of our program's donors and those who paved the way. With another year of Bison Athletics in full swing, I am honored to share my experience with our loyal alumni, families, and friends. Your support, no matter the amount, is pivotal in ensuring that my teammates and I have all the essential resources that allow us to compete at the highest level.
Thank you for letting me enjoy the experiences that are Bucknell. Without your support, I would not have experienced the growth that I have these past years here at Bucknell.
Go Bison!
Matt Ryckman '25
Majoring in Mechanical Engineering
Bucknell Men's Water Polo
Dear Bucknell Men's Polo Community,
My name is Matt Ryckman and I am a student in the College of Engineering Class of 2025 and a member of the men’s water polo team. I applied to college in the age of COVID-19, and truth be told, the first time I saw campus was the day I walked onto the pool deck to start one of Coach McBride’s notorious Hell Weeks. At the time, I felt like a stranger to the University. I had heard nothing but good news from alumni and parents, yet I still found myself asking random people simple questions such as, “Excuse me, but where is the pool?”
My first week on campus was a blur between test sets, ice baths, and food, a lot of food. I had come from a small boarding school in Hartford, Connecticut called Loomis Chaffee, where I had taken a step back from the top gun of athletics in Greenwich, Connecticut to focus on my studies and find something I had never known before - balance.
Now, I found myself walking into a level of water polo I couldn’t even comprehend. With people who had traveled from all over the world, who spoke languages I had never heard, to play water polo. Between heavy conditioning early in the mornings and classes that made me question if I ever even went to school, I was being pushed way out of the bubble I had grown up in.
But I wasn’t alone. I was amazed at how many student-athletes were in the same boat as me, rubbing the sleep out of their eyes as they left the Kenneth Langone Athletics & Recreation Center and hurried to their 8:00 a.m. classes. On this campus in the middle of relatively nowhere, there was a herd of people who had found a state of equilibrium while walking through the fire.
I wanted to be like these people. They had unwavering discipline. Attitudes that could concur with any foreseeable challenges. Bonds that were as close as brothers. COVID had made me soft. I breezed through senior year taking classes at home and never really understood what I was truly capable of. I needed my eyes to be opened and Bucknell was that catalyst.
When people ask about my college experience, I tell them that I have changed more in the past two years than in my entire childhood. Don’t take it lightly when I say that Bucknell is life-changing. The faculty and coaches are what make this campus the most critical four years in adult development. They know when to push, training individuals to break through their self-imposed limits. They also know how to support, and effectively guide students to the state of equilibrium I so desired.
When times get tough, and they will get tough, Bucknell provides empathetic support across all fields. Some teachers and advisors are willing to stay after hours to tediously dissect educational problems and avidly provide help when needed. There are genius student tutors who aced the classes you can't wrap your head around and who are developing their own teaching methods to help others. Some coaches know you better than yourself. Nutritionists, doctors, physical therapists, the list goes on. There is support for everyone, all with the same goal. To see you succeed.
I no longer run away from challenges. I embrace them with a smile. If I can fight a 6’4” Turk weighing in at 230 lbs. in the water daily, I am sure that anything I am given at a desk or in the real world won’t punch as hard as him. Where else can you get that?
My remarkable experiences at Bucknell have been made possible through the generosity and support of our program's donors and those who paved the way. With another year of Bison Athletics in full swing, I am honored to share my experience with our loyal alumni, families, and friends. Your support, no matter the amount, is pivotal in ensuring that my teammates and I have all the essential resources that allow us to compete at the highest level.
Thank you for letting me enjoy the experiences that are Bucknell. Without your support, I would not have experienced the growth that I have these past years here at Bucknell.
Go Bison!
Matt Ryckman '25
Majoring in Mechanical Engineering
Bucknell Men's Water Polo