Coaches

Bryan Howard

ROLLA, Mo. – Bryan Howard, who has served as the head coach at Connors State College for the past three seasons, has been named as the new head softball coach at Missouri S&T.


Over his three seasons at Connors State, he led the Cowgirls to 55 wins over that span – the 2020 season was cut short after 17 games due to the COVID-19 pandemic – including a 29-win performance last spring that included a mark of 21-9 at home. The Cowgirls had won just 16 games during the season prior to his arrival prior to the 2020 campaign.


"I would like to thank Melissa Ringhausen for this opportunity," Howard said. "From the time I arrived on campus, she and the entire staff made me feel very welcome. I am excited to join the entire S&T family.


"I look forward to building on last year's progress and can't wait to get to work with the team. Go Miners!", Howard added.


"We are so excited to have Coach Howard join our staff and lead the softball program," said Ringhausen, Missouri S&T's Director of Athletics. "Bryan has proven success at all levels of the game. He has won championships and turned struggling programs into highly competitive programs. He embraces the priority of academics here at S&T and has a genuine love and passion for athletics.


"I am confident his leadership will have an immediate impact on our program and we are eager to welcome him and his family to S&T," Ringhausen added.


While his most recent stop has been at the two-year school level, Howard has been a head coach in the NAIA at Tabor College and an assistant coach at the University of Tulsa in NCAA Division I, where it won the American Athletic Conference championship in 2018. Howard also served as the head coach at Northern Oklahoma College-Enid, recording a record of 72-45 in two years that followed a successful high school coaching career spanning six seasons at Washington and Mustang High Schools in Oklahoma.


At the high school level, Howard led his teams to a record of 243-81 and three state championships, winning the Oklahoma 4A title in 2011, the 6A championship in 2013 and the 5A title a year later. He was a two-time state Coach of the Year in Oklahoma and won regional Coach of the Year honors on two occasions.


In 2014 at Mustang, he coached the Gatorade Player of the Year, Jayden Chestnut, who went on to pitch for a national championship team at the University of Oklahoma. He had led teams to nine district championships and eight regional titles during his coaching career that includes the club circuit, where he has won over 750 games as a coach.


Originally from Henrietta, Okla., Howard earned his bachelor's degree from Northeastern State University in general studies and a Master's from Southwestern Oklahoma State in sports management. Howard's wife, Ashton, is a former college softball player at Northwestern Oklahoma State and the couple has two sons; Howard also has two daughters.


Howard takes the position previously held by Cathy Monroe, who stepped down earlier this summer to accept the head coaching post at fellow Great Lakes Valley Conference member Quincy University. The Miners finished with a 24-26 overall record last season – a 17-win improvement over their mark in the 2021 campaign.