Staff photo / John Vargo Struthers huddles around its coach during a practice last week. The Wildcats are off to a 5-0 start.

STRUTHERS — Carson Ryan understood the transition was going to be rough. Any time someone brings a new culture and views into a program, it’s normally met with resistance.

The 6-foot-4 Struthers High School senior guard said last year was a struggle as the Wildcats’ boys basketball team went 10-13.

Ryan, who is being recruited by Fairmont State, Youngstown State and Virginia Military Institute, saw a first-time high school coach take over the program in Michael Wernicki. He came to Struthers with a wealth of experience at the collegiate level, most recently as a former YSU assistant coach. Wernicki didn’t get the job until June, which didn’t help with the offseason training.

“I hate to do this, but I compare us to the Browns,” Ryan said. “You have all the talent you need, but you need time to jell.

“Over the offseason, we’ve done nothing but spend time together and work to accomplish what we want. It was rough, but this is home. I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.”

The Wildcats are off to a 5-0 start and host Austintown Fitch today.

Ryan played football in the fall of 2018 and was injured at the end of the season. Wernicki said he saw the cohesiveness the Struthers football team had off the field, constantly hanging out with one another and working out together. He wanted that for his Wildcats.

“This year, we went to 10 camps,” Wernicki said. “We had practices. We utilized our 10 days in the summertime. That really helped us jell a little bit together. It’s carried over. We have a long way to go. I credit the guys. They’re trying to break bad habits, but old habits die hard.

“We’re by no means a finished product.”

Neither were former YSU standouts like guards Kendrick Perry, who spoke to the Wildcats over the summer, and Blake Allen.

These players spent time in the gym and film study. They were focused. Wernicki wants the same from this Struthers team, but this is a different scenario. He has them for a couple hours after school. Some of them haven’t eaten since 10:30 a.m., and are coming off a full day of school. Getting that focus and coachability isn’t easy, no matter the sport.

“We’re here for a purpose,” Wernicki said. “I’m trying to help you get better. It’s not going to happen unless you let me.

“Everybody looks at KP as the guy he left when he was a senior. He wasn’t that way as a freshman. Same with Blake Allen. All those guys that we had got incrementally better every year. They didn’t come in as great players, but they were coachable. If I’m trying to bring anything, it’s that.”

Wernickis emphasized it’s about being accountable, not only to your team but to yourself as a high school athlete.

“You’re trying to get the high school guys to understand if you want to improve, regardless of what your goal is, it doesn’t matter if you want to play at the next level, if you want to be a better high school player, there’s certain steps you have to take,” he said. “It’s hard to get these guys to understand that. The guys that play all the time think they’re more important than what they are at times. The guys that don’t play think they’re less important. You’re trying to find that common ground. Look, we’re a group and we can’t exist without each other. Those are some of the things that are hard to get across at times.”

Wernicki wants his team to be as one on the floor — offensively and defensively.

He wants his team to play hard defensively and pressure the ball.

“When you’re on the help side, it’s one guy guarding the ball and four guys helping that guy,” he said. “Too many times you got two or three guys who are on the help side that are not even looking at the ball and staring. To me, that’s selfish basketball. This is not about your man. This is not about who you start on and how many points they have. This is about the final score and how many points we have as to opposed to how many points they have. That’s another message I’ve been trying to instill with these guys. They’ve done a much better job.”

It’s about a change in attitude for the Wildcats. It’s more than Ryan. It’s about players like Jared Laczko, Aidan Slocum, Brandon Washington and Trey Metzka.

“I love making the next pass as much as I love making the next shot,” Ryan said. “That’s something not a lot of teams have. It’s something we didn’t have last year, to be honest with you.

“Last year we played a little bit selfishly. I love these guys. We want our top five players to be in the first team all (Northeast-8) conference. That’s my goal. I want to see everybody eat. I want to see everybody do good this year.”

Ryan looked up toward the wall at the far end of the Struthers Fieldhouse. He remembered when he was younger and was a ball boy for the Wildcats, sitting high up in the stands watching practices.

His older brother, Jordan, and his Struthers team won the Division II Boardman District title in 2011.

“I’ve been in love with the game forever,” Ryan said. “He really instilled that in me.”

jvargo@tribtoday.com