By Ken Hansard 

Cole Ramey, a senior running back, receiver and defensive back for the Neodesha Blue Streaks, credits the influence of his grandfather for his love of the game, “My papa, Clyde Ramey, was a linebacker at the University of Tennessee and has always been a huge role model in my life.”  As a senior for Neodesha, Ramey wants to pass along his love of the sport, his knowledge of the game, and the life lessons he has learned to his younger teammates, “My goal is always to lead by example and to put everything on the line every game.” 

In his time as a Blue Streak, Cole has built an impressive resume that has commanded the respect of his teammates, who named Ramey their 2023 Offensive Player of the Year.  However, Cole’s influence resonates far beyond the walls of the Neodesha locker room.  He has also caught the attention of other coaches in the Tri-Valley League, as well as 3A coaches from around the state. In addition to being named Tri-Valley All-League on both sides of the football, he is an All-State Honorable Mention and was nominated Honorable Mention All-State for non-seniors.  Finally, his interception total ranked him number seven in the state of Kansas last season. 

It is not just the accolades that demand respect.  Ramey’s entire character resonates with effort, hard work, and character.  “We have a young team without many seniors, but we have a lot of juniors that have already been showing great leadership. We struggled with our tackling last year, but just in our first two camps this summer, I can see our work in the offseason is paying off.” 

That improvement is reason for Ramey to be optimistic about the upcoming season, “We always have the mentality that our next game is the most important one, so we are really excited for the opening game so we can set the tone right off the bat. I’m looking forward to watching our team grow and improve from the start of the season to the end.” 

Maybe above all, Cole is just excited about the chance to lead his charges one last time and leave his legacy on the Blue Streaks’ culture, “I want people to be able to look back at my time here and say that I left it all on the field and that they never saw me take a play off.” 

When he is not starring on the gridiron, Cole also plays baseball and runs track, where he qualified for state in the long jump.  Ramey is outstanding in the classroom, also, sporting a GPA of just under 4.0.  Following high school, Cole wants to continue his education at the next level, where he plans to pursue a degree in finance and business.