CLAREMORE, Okla. – Rogers State women's soccer head coach Scott Parkinson announced the addition of Bryan Byars as the goalkeeper coach for the Hillcats for the 2017 season.
 
"We are thrilled with the signing of Byars into our coaching staff her at RSU," Parkinson said. "He is one of the best goalkeepers to ever come out of Oklahoma. Now that he's in the pros with the Tulsa Roughnecks, we felt this would be a good opportunity for him to stay connected to the coaching side of the game and help our goalkeepers improve. We are very lucky to now have him on staff. I played and roomed with Byars at college for three years. He is the best goalkeeper I have ever played with hands down. He was also my assistant at Chickasha High School and ended up taking over the program when I moved to Tulsa."
 
Byars is currently a professional goalkeeper with Tulsa Roughnecks FC of the United Soccer League (USL), the second level of professional soccer in the United States. He has made six starts this season with 23 saves and one clean sheet. The Roughnecks are currently 12-10-4 and rank fifth in the Western Conference of the USL.
 
The Oklahoma City native has three years of professional soccer experience. In the 2016 season, Byars played for Rayo OKC of the North American Soccer League (NASL). He started his professional career with the Oklahoma City Energy of the USL in 2015.
 
Byars played four record-breaking seasons for the University of Sciences & Arts of Oklahoma in his collegiate career. He holds the career goalkeeper record for wins at USAO with 64 in his four seasons. Byars also holds the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) record with 46 clean sheets in his career. While at USAO, he was a multiple All-American for the Drovers. Byars was a four-time all-conference selection and the 2012 Sooner Athletic Conference Goalkeeper of the Year. He was also named to the 2013 NSCAA All-Southwest Region Team.
 
Along with his playing experience, Byars served as an assistant coach at Chickasha High School under Parkinson. Byars was elevated to the head coaching position after the departure of Parkinson.   
 
Byars earned his bachelors of science from USAO in 2015.