Kansas Pregame 8-Man Top 8: Ryder Dent

Kansas Pregame polled 8-Man coaches earlier this month who voted for the top four seniors they coached against this season. Kansas Pregame staffers then used those votes to develop a Top 8 list of seniors for each division. Check out another Top 8 capsule below, and find the complete list of Top 8 selections, and the honorable mention list, here for 8-Man I and here for 8-Man II.

In their second season of 8-Man football the Ell-Saline Cardinals proved they belonged, going 10-2 with a state semifinal appearance. While the offense and defense were both loaded with All-League selections, it was senior Ryder Dent that was the beating heart of the Cardinals attack on both sides of the ball.

“Ryder was our Cardinal Player of the Year,” head coach Joe Roche said. “He was our best player overall. He meant everything to our offense, defense, and special teams. When he was successful, so was our entire team because he impacted most parts of our game. He led us in rushing, tackles, total plays on the field; he was simply all over the field.”

While he wasn’t always the gamechanger witnessed this fall, Dent has made an impact on the field since early in his high school career, when Ell-Saline was still playing 11-Man.

“Ryder has been a defensive starter since he was a freshman playing one of the toughest schedules in our program’s history,” Roche said. “There was never a night off and he improved throughout the entire process. Besides putting on weight and strength in the weight room, Ryder's greatest improvement was his knowledge of the game. He loved watching film, so when he said he had an idea then I for sure listened because it was coming from film study and thinking about the game. It was definitely fun to be around.” 

That freshman season Dent recorded 13 total tackles, a forced fumble, two fumble recoveries, and four tackles-for-loss on a team that finished 4-6. 

Weeks 3 through 7 were particularly brutal for the Cardinals, with four of those five teams finishing the season with at least eight wins, including Smith Center, who they lost to again in the second round of the 1A playoffs to end that 2020 season.

In his sophomore season, Dent was more productive on defense, recording 58 tackles, six tackles-for-loss, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery, along with 30 carries for 109 yards and two touchdowns on offense, but the Cardinals were again hit hard in the middle of the season with a four-game losing streak against stiff opposition.

The Cardinals again finished 4-6, this time losing in the second round in a rematch against Sedgwick, who finished the season as a state semifinalist and 10-1 overall.

The 2022 season saw a switch from 1A to 8-Man I for Ell-Saline, a change to which the Cardinals acclimated to well.

Dent made a switch offensively to right guard and helped clear the way for an offense that scored 34 points or more in all six of their wins, with the team finishing 6-3 after a first round playoff loss to a tough Hoxie squad.

The junior made his biggest impact at linebacker, recording 109 tackles, 11 tackles-for-loss, three forced fumbles, three fumbles recoveries, and two pass breakups.

Dent earned All-State honorable mention and first team All-League on defense for his efforts.

Entering his senior season Dent made the switch from lineman back into the backfield, where he continued to punish defenders with or without the football.

“In most of our games Ryder was the toughest player on the field,” Roche said. “When you combine his toughness with his knowledge of our playbook, his film study of his opponent, and love of the game it makes a great player and teammate. There were games that Ryder simply took over and it wasn't always seen in his statline. He was a devastating blocker out of the backfield.”

Along with clearing the way for teammates, Dent carried the ball 170 times for 938 yards and 22 TDs, with another 13 receptions for 101 yards and another score.

Defensively, he had 105 tackles, six sacks, and 13 tackles-for-loss.

The Cardinals dropped their season opener against Moudnridge before proceeding to win 10 consecutive games, including playoff wins over Quinter 48-0, Meade 68-20, and a revenge game against Hoxie for last season’s playoff loss, which Ell-Saline won 44-42 in one of the most exciting games of the postseason.

The season finally came to an end in the semifinal matchup with state runner-up Wichita County, 64-28.

Along with his Top 8 selection, Dent earned All-State from multiple media outlets at linebacker, as well as first team All-League at running back.

After he wraps up high school, Dent has a potential future in football as well as rodeo, another sport he stands out in. If football is the path he chooses, his coach believes that program will receive a proven leader.

“When he spoke, our team listened,” Roche said. “His teammates saw how hard worked since he was a freshman, they all seemed to know that he should be one of our leaders. He was also part of a wonderful senior class. They kept things fun in the locker room without losing our focus and accepted all new-comers to our team. It made for one of the most fun years of my career.”