Florida Christian girls’ basketball team dedicating season to coach’s son. Here’s why

The Miami Herald held its annual Miami-Dade County Athletic Awards at the Miami Airport Convention Center on May 23, 2019. BY DANIEL A. VARELA

They wrote “#4 Ryan” on their sneakers, and it was heartfelt. Just 30 minutes before Florida Christian’s girls’ basketball team was set to open its season Nov. 18, the players decided to honor the late Ryan Ramis, who died this past May 6 at the age of 29.

Ryan, the son of Florida Christian coach Peter Ramis, had gotten hooked on painkillers. An autopsy showed that Ryan had used, perhaps unwittingly, a synthetic opioid known as fentanyl, which is up to 50 times more powerful than heroin. Ryan’s death left a void in the lives of everyone who loved him.

“We know that Ryan meant a lot to our coach,” said Samantha Muro, a junior center on the Florida Christian team. “Our coach is dedicating this season to Ryan, and we wanted to do the same. We wanted Ryan to be one of the inspirations for our season, and what we wrote on our sneakers was a surprise for Coach.”
Basketball had been one of the main threads that connected Peter and Ryan Ramis.

Peter’s own father, Pedro Ramis, died in a 1968 crash of the small plane he was flying from Saint Croix to Puerto Rico. Peter, who was only three years old at the time, went on to play high school basketball, although, he admits, not very well.

Without a father to teach him the game, Ramis would go to the public library in Hialeah, where he would read all about basketball strategy and fundamentals. All that knowledge led to a coaching career.

“When I first started coaching, it was a way to heal my heart,” Ramis said. “Coaching boys made me feel what it would’ve been like had my dad been there for me.

“But eventually I started coaching girls because I saw how tough my mom was and how she worked multiple jobs and kept our family together. I saw my three older sisters become a dentist, a nurse and a banker, and I realized there’s nothing girls can’t do.”

Ramis’ career as a girls’ basketball coach was off to an impressive start, posting a 22-6 record and a 2018 regional playoff berth in his second season at St. Brendan.

But, shortly after that breakthrough season, Ramis found out Ryan — an avid recreational basketball player and weight-lifter who suffered through numerous injuries — had become addicted to painkillers.

Ramis quit his job as a regional sales manager and also resigned as St. Brendan’s coach so he could take care of Ryan, who refused to go to a rehab program.

“He had this mental picture of rehab programs being full of crack addicts. He thought being there would make him worse. So, he moved back in with me,” said Ramis, who is divorced/remarried and lives with his wife and three younger children.

“Ryan was depressed all the time. He wouldn’t leave his room. It was terrible. I did everything I could to save him. I cooked and cleaned for him and took him on walks. … He was getting better, little by little.”

BRIGHT FUTURE

Ryan had recently graduated from FIU with a master’s degree in cyber security.

Gabriela Abreu, who is closing in on a law degree from the University of Miami, was Ryan’s girlfriend for the final three years of his life.

“He meant everything to me — he was the love of my life,” said Abreu, 24. “He could strike up a conversation with anyone — very charismatic.

“But he was happiest when he was teaching basketball with his father at their academy. He loved basketball. He was always watching basketball on TV, playing basketball or teaching basketball. Since I’m 5-foot-10, he thought we’d have basketball children.”

Ryan loved the sport so much that he got mad when he heard his father had quit coaching on his account. As a concession to Ryan, Ramis took the job at Florida Christian, starting with the 2018-2019 season.

Meanwhile, Abreu said she knew Ryan took Xanax, which is used to treat anxiety disorders. But she had no idea how bad Ryan’s addiction was until the end.

“One of the problems with opioids is that it’s not as easy to see the signs,” Ramis said. “People who are using can seem normal from a physical standpoint.”

Although Ryan refused to attend a detox program, his father was able to take him to a psychologist, who prescribed pills but at a much smaller dosage. The idea was to wean Ryan off painkillers on a gradual basis.

Unfortunately, Ryan suffered a bad reaction to the medication. Ramis rushed his son to Jackson Hospital, where doctors said he was being weaned off the medication too quickly. Ryan’s dosage was doubled, but when he ran out of pills, pharmacies wouldn’t give him a refill. Ryan then apparently went to a street dealer, which is how he got the pills laced with fentanyl.

“That stuff numbed the part of his brain that controls breathing, which is why he fell asleep and never woke up,” Ramis said. “I can only imagine how many other parents were as clueless as I was in dealing with this issue.”

Since losing his son, it’s been a struggle for Ramis emotionally as well as financially. Although he was highly successful in his previous job, he hasn’t worked full-time since January, and he has drained his 401K to help support his family.

Basketball, just as it was when his father died, has been his salvation.

“Losing my son has been the most devastating thing I’ve ever experienced,” Ramis said. “What I did not expect was for God to again use basketball as a way to heal my heart.

“Coaching has kept me sane. When I coach, I feel like Ryan is still with me.

“I have a special bond with my players, and the way they have responded to everything that has happened has truly lifted my spirits.”