Ryan Poehling accomplished a rare feat at the beginning of the season: he was one of very few NCAA players to begin his collegiate career at just 17 years of age.
To allow for that opportunity, he loaded up on high-school courses and spent the summer of 2016 in the classroom to get his diploma a year early. With his schooling complete, he headed to St. Cloud State University for his freshman season.
The advanced plan was set into motion by SCSU’s head coach, Bob Motzko, who proposed the idea to Poehling’s parents after the university program saw several of its players, a few of them centres, depart in the off-season.