SUNY Cortland Athletics

2024: Ryan was a third team D3football.com All-American...First team D3football.com All-Region II honoree...Was a first team All-Empire 8 selection for the second straight year...Started all 12 games during the season for the Red Dragons...Part of the offensive unit that ranked seventh in total offense in the nation (496.1 yards per game), eighth in scoring offense (45.8 points per game), and 13th in rushing offense (216.8 yards per game)...Member of the offensive line that earned D3football.com National Team of the Week honors three times during the season, on Sep. 17, Oct. 22, and Nov. 13...A 2024 D3football.com third team preseason All-American...Team captain for second straight year.

2023: Starting center in all 15 games...D3football.com second team all-region and first team All-Empire 8...Team set school records for scoring average (46.2 points/game), total offense (509.2 yards/game), rushing yards (3,373) and passing yards (4,265)...Part of offensive line that earned D3football.com National Team of the Week honor for performance versus Utica.

2022: As a guard, earned second team All-Empire 8 honors...Started all 11 games...Member of an offensive unit that averaged 499.6 yards of offense per game and scored more than 45 points in a game six times.

2021: Played in 11 games, starting the last nine of the season...Member of an offensive unit that set a program record for scoring average at 41.4 points per game and scored 45 or more points in a game seven times.

2020: Member of the program but the season was canceled.

High School: Graduated from Amherst in 2020...Scholar Athlete...Member of the National Honor Society...Named Amherst Bee and school Male Athlete of the Year...Three-year starter in football...Earned first team Amherst Bee All-Offense honors twice and All-Defense honors once...Trench Trophy finalist...Four-year member of the wrestling team...Two-time Class A and ECIC champion...Won sectional title and placed eighth at state championships...Three-year starter in lacrosse...Team was sectional runner-up.

Other: Grandparents Mary and David Hewitt are Cortland graduates.

Parents: Heather and Terence Bitka...Father is a 1986 Cortland graduate and was a football team captain...Served 36 years on the Buffalo State coaching staff, including associate head coach from 1999 until his retirement in 2022...Siblings: Brandon, Emily...Brandon played lacrosse at Hilbert College...Emily played lacrosse at Albany and Slippery Rock and was an assistant coach for the Cortland women’s lacrosse team in 2022 and 2023 (currently head coach at Daemen).