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Greater Minnesota
Estelle Timar-Wilcox

UMD mourns unexpected death of student athlete

A football player on a field
Reed Ryan, 22, was a senior linebacker at the University of Minnesota Duluth who died on Tuesday.
Courtesy photo

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The University of Minnesota Duluth is mourning the sudden loss of a student football player. 

Reed Ryan, 22, was a senior linebacker. He died on Tuesday, according to the university.  

According to an online obituary, Ryan had an undetected genetic heart condition that caused him to go into cardiac arrest last week after a team workout. 

In the university’s statement, head football coach Curt Weise said that the team is devastated about Ryan’s death.  

“Reed aspired to be better every day at whatever task was at hand,” Weise said. “He helped bring out the best in others with his positive attitude, infectious smile and genuine care for the people around him.”  

Ryan was from Waunakee, Wis. He played football for four seasons at North Dakota State University before coming to Duluth this fall as a defensive lineman. He was studying marketing and professional sales at UMD. 

Weise said Ryan made the football program a better place. In his season at UMD, Ryan totaled eight tackles and one sack in nine games. 

Ryan’s obituary notes that he’ll be part of an NCAA research study aiming to prevent similar accidents from happening to other athletes. 

The family is holding a funeral in Wisconsin on Dec. 2.  

Correction (Nov. 30, 2023): An earlier version of this story had Reed Ryan's name transposed.