The legacy of the late Rick Pribyl, a longtime soccer coach and teacher in the Blue Valley School District, lives on in the new name of the soccer field at Switzer District Athletic Complex.
The Blue Valley Board of Education on June 9 approved the name change for the field near 135th Street and Switzer Road in honor of Pribyl, officially designating it Rick Pribyl Field.
Pribyl was known for having a lasting impact on students and athletes that stretched far beyond the sidelines. He died in December 2024.
A fixture in the district for over three decades, Pribyl taught English and coached varsity soccer at Blue Valley North and Blue Valley Northwest high schools. He served as BV Northwest’s first head coach when the school’s soccer program opened in 1993.
Former Blue Valley School District Superintendent Tonya Merrigan knew Pribyl personally. She said Pribyl was a fabulous coach but an even better English teacher.
“Students would say life-changing English teacher,” Merrigan said. “He is [one] that when you come back from college and say, ‘Wow, I can read and write at [a] college and graduate level because of Mr. Pribyl.”
A teacher and coach who treated others like family
John Pierzchala, a 1991 graduate of Blue Valley North and soccer player under Pribyl, requested the name change for the district field. He said Pribyl was a coach and teacher who made everyone feel important.
“He wrote me a letter after my freshman year of college, reminding me about a goal I scored in high school,” Pierzchala said. “He never let me forget it. That was our running joke. But that’s the kind of coach he was, he remembered the little things about all of us.”
Building Kansas City soccer through community
Pribyl helped build the foundation for soccer in Kansas City and was widely respected for fostering a culture of unity among coaches and players.
“He helped grow the game here,” said Scott Pribyl, his son. “He coached hundreds of kids and still found ways to bring coaches together, even holding barbecues before preseason camps.”
Scott Pribyl added that his father always credited his longtime coaching partner, Brian Murphy, for his success. Rick Pribyl often said he wouldn’t have received the recognition he did without Murphy by his side.
Known for a respected leadership style
Pierzchala said he remembers Pribyl for the calm, steady leadership that defined his career.
“You didn’t want to disappoint him,” Pierzchala said. “He wasn’t a screamer. He was very even-keeled, but he always made you feel like you were important.”
Pribyl was known for leaving a lasting impact in the classroom. A former student teacher and coworker, Jim McCrossen, said in a note to Scott Pribyl that his father left a legacy at Blue Valley Northwest.
“Your dad was the most decorated teacher at BVNW in terms of students who said he changed their lives — or made them a better person — or helped them appreciate literature — or simply made them laugh while learning,” McCrossen wrote. “He was always a teacher first and a coach second. He even considered his athletes students of soccer in an outdoor classroom.”
Scott Pribyl said this honor means the world to his family.
“He was like the original Ted Lasso,” Scott said. “Just this calm, funny, caring guy who made you want to be better, not just at soccer, but at life.”
Accomplishments
Pribyl’s career accolades as a soccer coach include, but are not limited to:
- Varsity coach for boys and girls at Blue Valley North (1988–1993)
- Varsity coach for boys and girls at Blue Valley Northwest (1993–2018)
- He was the first varsity soccer coach when the school opened.
- Blue KC Sporting Samaritan for April (2017)
- 764 career varsity victories, including eight state championships:
- BV Northwest Girls Varsity State Championships: 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015
- BV Northwest Boys Varsity State Championships: 2006, 2013, 2015
- BV North Boys Varsity State Championship: 1992
- 14 regional championships between boys and girls soccer at BV Northwest
- Two National Coach of the Year awards from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America
- National Boys Soccer Coach of the Year (2007)
- National Girls Soccer Coach of the Year (2013)
- Kevin Gray Coach of the Year (2013)
- Inducted into the Sports/Athletics Hall of Fame at Rockhurst High School, Saint Louis University and Blue Valley Northwest
“He was more than just wins and losses and accolades,” Pierzchala said. “He gave so much of his time to us. This is the least we could do.”
