Kentucky’s new cheerleading coach thrilled to be ‘back home in Lexington.’

The University of Kentucky conducted a national search to find the next coach to lead its championship cheerleading program. The Wildcats found what they were looking for right in their own backyard.

Ryan Martin O’Connor, a Lexington native who cheered for UK and Paul Laurence Dunbar High School, has been hired to replace Jomo Thompson as head coach of UK’s 24-time national champions.

Thompson and three of his assistant coaches were dismissed last month after an investigation into allegations of hazing, nudity and alcohol use on cheer team trips.

“Ryan is exactly the kind of person we wanted to hire as we sought the next leader of Kentucky cheerleading,” UK Athletics Director Mitch Barnhart said in a news release Tuesday evening. “She has a proven track record of success, brings incredible energy to her work, and shares our commitment to both integrity and competitive excellence. Not only that, she also has an intimate understanding of the proud tradition of this program and what it means to cheerleaders, this university and the Big Blue Nation. We are excited to help her write the program’s next chapter.”

O’Connor comes to UK from Western Kentucky University, where she was the head cheerleading coach and spirit program coordinator.

“It’s a dream come true to be back home in Lexington to lead the best cheerleading program in the country,” O’Connor said in the UK news release. “I have watched this program my entire life and I can’t wait to experience these traditions again from a new role. I look forward to continuing our success and building on our game-day atmosphere. That’s what our cheerleaders and the best fans in the world deserve.”

O’Connor was a five-time KAPOS state champion and a five-time UCA National High School Cheerleading champion at Dunbar. She went on to cheer at UK in 2008-09 and at Alabama from 2009-12, where she won the 2011 UCA College National Championship.

Before taking the WKU job, O’Connor built successful programs at UAB and Ole Miss.

O’Connor and her husband, Kyle, have one son, Michael.

This story was originally published June 23, 2020 at 6:48 PM.