ASU Trailblazer: Dr. Michael Patyrak

First, he was born into a family of Cowboys fans in Berlin, Germany, while his dad, long-time San Angelo pediatrician Dr. Rob Patyrak, was in the U.S. Army. He spent the first year of his life within sight of the Berlin Wall – and at a time when the Cowboys were the only NFL team whose games aired on the U.S. Armed Forces Network.

Then, Patyrak moved with his family to San Angelo in 1980. His dad had mistaken San Angelo for San Marcos, so he was a bit disappointed to not land in the Hill Country when he flew in for his job interview. Luckily, the Dallas Cowboys intervened.

“Dr. Dwayne Dotson picked my dad up at the airport on a Sunday and took him on a quick tour of San Angelo,” Patyrak said. “But he kept looking at his watch and asked my dad whether he minded if they cut off the tour early so they could catch the Cowboys game on TV. My dad said he knew right then that San Angelo was the place for him.”

Now, after graduating first in his class from Angelo State and first in his class from the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, Patyrak is the lead team radiologist for – you guessed it – the Dallas Cowboys.

“It’s surreal,” Patyrak said. “I didn’t go into medicine with the purpose of working for any sports team, much less my favorite team from childhood. It has just worked out that way. If someone had told the 16-year-old me that I would go to school for a while, become a radiologist, and end up working for the Cowboys one day, I wouldn’t have believed them. I still have to pinch myself.”

“But I take it very seriously,” he continued. “Professionally, I can’t imagine doing something that is more intellectually stimulating. I take care of these multi-million-dollar athletes in the NFL and other sports, and all the principles I use to interpret their radiology exams, I get to use on everyone else who walks into our imaging center. I really like that aspect of my job.”

“The fact that I can still take care of people in San Angelo and West Texas from my base in Dallas is very valuable to me.”

Not bad for a guy who didn’t arrive at Angelo State until his sophomore year. After graduating from San Angelo Central High School, Patyrak went to Tulane University in New Orleans before transferring to ASU. He earned a Carr Scholarship and, as a self-professed science nerd, formed most of his fondest campus memories in and around the Cavness Science Building.

“My junior and senior years, we were successful in developing the ‘Science Days’ program, where local SAISD students would take a field trip to campus for various demonstrations from each of the basic sciences,” Patyrak said. “Leading science demonstrations, escorting the students, and seeing their excitement and occasional wonder made for one of the most satisfying experiences of my undergraduate career.”

Patyrak on the field for ASU Homecoming 2008 But it wasn’t all work. There was plenty of play, including one particular impromptu science experiment.

“We were outside with some liquid nitrogen, a garbage can and a plastic two-liter bottle – and then BOOM!” Patyrak said. “It literally sounded like a very large bomb went off, and that was not the anticipated outcome. Let’s just say we found out the ASU police’s response time was under two minutes. We scattered like the wind.”

Patyrak also attended ASU with his mom, Deborah (Class of 2001). She was earning her nursing degree at the same time he was applying to medical schools, and it became a hot topic in all of his interviews.

“All the applications had a section asking if anyone in your family is in the medical field,” Patyrak said. “I put my dad down as a practicing pediatrician, and I also put that my mom was in nursing school. First thing in every interview – they were interested in figuring out why my mom was in nursing school when my dad was a physician. They were fascinated by that and really impressed.”

“I work with some of the biggest minds in sports medicine and some of the top athletes in the world.”

After graduating from ASU and medical school, Patyrak spent 2006-12 at UT Southwestern/Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas. In 2012, he got the call to join the Dallas Cowboys’ Blue Star Radiology, and he has been the lead team radiologist since 2018. He has also consulted for a multitude of other college and professional teams, including the U.S. Men’s National Soccer Team, and he has contracts with about 35 other radiology centers, including Angelo MRI in San Angelo.

“I will be remote here in Dallas interpreting the images that are done in San Angelo, Midland, Lubbock or any of the other centers,” Patyrak said. “The fact that I can still take care of people in San Angelo and West Texas from my base in Dallas is very valuable to me. I take a lot of honor in that.”

Dr. Patyrak (top right) and the other 2008 Alumni Association Homecoming Honorees And Angelo State takes a lot of honor in alumni like Patyrak. In 2008, he was named a Distinguished Carr Scholar Alumnus, and his favorite recognition actually came two years earlier when he was invited to be the commencement speaker at ASU’s 2006 fall graduation ceremonies.

“That was very special, particularly because I felt like I was still a kid at the time,” Patyrak said. “My message was just about the intrinsic value of education that was passed on to me by my family. I really wanted those graduates to feel that was a special day. It was more than just an honor, it was sacred to me to be able to speak to them that day. It’s something I’ll never forget.”

Cowboys fans or not, every member of the Ram Family can take inspiration from such a trailblazing alumnus.

“I work with some of the biggest minds in sports medicine and some of the top athletes in the world,” Patyrak said. “It was wild at first, but now it’s just normal for me. It makes me truly believe that anything is possible, and I’m grateful to Angelo State and the people of San Angelo and West Texas because I wouldn’t be in this position without them.”