Lewiston Times

Two brothers from nearby Falmouth, Maine, love their sports, most notably the perennial-champion New England Patriots; one a Tom Brady fan, the other a Gronk guy. Growing up in the ultimate era for a New England football follower, the sport made an unforgettable impact on Jack and Sean Bryant at a very young age. So much so, that the pair would go on to become college teammates on the gridiron at Bates College.

 The desire to compete seemed to have always been ingrained in the pair.

"I think every time we were watching a game on TV, at halftime we would go outside and go play hoops or football or something," said older brother, Sean. "Lots of great battles in the backyard, for sure."

"We started playing competitive football the exact same year," said Sean, who is two years older than Jack. "My dad (Tim) played college football at UMASS, so he was familiar with all the injuries and things like that. He was trying to keep us away from it for a little bit."

Persistence paid off for the boys as they finally got the go-ahead from their parents to take the field.

"I started in fifth grade, and he (Jack) started in third grade,"Sean continued. "We obviously got time on the field together when he started sophomore year as the quarterback at Falmouth High when I was a senior. That was a really fun season to be able to do that with my buddies in my class and Jack starting."

Jack gives Sean all of the credit for ultimately convincing Mom and Dad to give their approval, and the brothers never looked back as the sport of football had created a bond between the two that only strengthened as they approached young adulthood.

"It's been great just to have that somebody to push you, someone who's a little bit older and is a role model for you," said Jack of his older brother.

As mentioned, with Sean and Jack having a two-year age gap, the Bryants would not play together on the same team until high school. Sean played on both sides of the ball as a wide receiver and defensive back. Jack was a quarterback, a position he was first introduced to in the fourth grade.

 Their dad served on the Falmouth coaching staff.

"He was the offensive coordinator at Falmouth my junior and senior years," said Jack. "He kind of coached us both all the way through youth football and basketball, so that was pretty cool to have him as our coach growing up."

And what was it like to finally have the Bryant brothers on the same team?

"It was really fun because, obviously, growing up we'd always practiced together and did all that stuff, like training and getting ready for the season," Jack said. "To actually get on the field together was pretty cool; I always felt like we had a good connection out there just because we had that chemistry together."

The duo would hook up for only three or four touchdowns during their lone high school campaign, but that wasn't due to lack of desire for more.

"I mean, we were a Maine high school football team, we liked to run the ball," said Jack.

"Exactly," seconded Sean. "We had a really good running back who ended up playing (NCAA Division I) baseball; he was a stud, so we gave him the ball a lot."

It was during this time that playing at the collegiate level was becoming more and more of a reality for Sean and Jack. Sean and his family decided that a postgraduate year would be beneficial for him.

"It allowed me to continue to grow physically and get that extra year since I was literally 5'3" and maybe 100 pounds by my first year of high school," said Sean. "By the time I was a senior, I was 6'1", 170. And so, I just took that year to keep growing."

With the plan being to attend prep school at The Holderness School in Plymouth, N.H. for one season, a serious injury to Sean altered the schedule.

"About five weeks into my prep school season,I had an injury to my pancreas, which actually knocked me out of school for pretty much the whole year," said Sean. "I was like, 'Do I want to keep playing football or not?'"

The answer was a resounding yes for the future Bobcat.

"I decided to go back to prep school for a second year and that's what sort of ended up getting me at Bates, because Jack had actually committed early that fall."

It turns out the younger Bryant played a role in bringing his older brother to Lewiston.

"I was looking at a couple other schools," said Sean. "Jack was like, 'You have to come to Bates, we'll room together!'"

In hindsight, things happened exactly as they should have for Sean.

"It was, honestly, the best decision I ever made (to return to prep school). For me, it was really just getting ready academically and getting my mindset ready to come to Bates because, I don't know, I was super hesitant whether I wanted to do it or not, just because of the injury. I don't know. It really worked out for me so I'm glad."

Skip Capone, former member of the Bates football staff and longtime assistant coach at the college, had his eye on both of the Bryants.

"He (Capone) started out recruiting Sean when he was a senior in high school, and I was going into my junior year," said Jack, a former All-State selection and Campbell Conference Player of the Year at Falmouth. "That's when we met each other for the first time, and we just kept that relationship going. I think they offered me a spot pretty early on in the year, so I took it right away because I really liked Bates on my visits and liked Coach Capone. From there, I felt like I was recruiting Sean, making sure he came here with me!"

But it wasn't only football that intrigued Sean when it came to joining the Bobcats.

"Bates was actually my dream. I wanted the mix of the academic rigor of Bates, and I wanted to play football in my backyard. Once I found out about what the college could do for me as a person, I really was locked in on that."

Things certainly seemed to happen for a reason as the Bryants were now on their way to Lewiston, primed to begin college together.

It certainly has not been the most traditional college experience as they navigated through the COVID-19 pandemic and the unknown that it created. However, once again, a negative proved to be a positive as both Jack and Sean took advantage of an opportunity to return for a fifth year.

"My dad was a big proponent of coming back for another year because he did it himself in college," said Sean, a sociology major. "He knew what it would do. Just honestly, we're never going to get to play again. So that was kind of his reasoning. You might as well take advantage of what you can. Once you hang them up, you're done forever. So, it's been a great opportunity to keep playing for a few more months and just getting more time in with all the guys."

Added Jack, "I already had to do a fifth year (due to an illness). I was just recruiting all the guys in my class because I wanted them to come back because we had a great relationship through college, and I wanted one more year with everybody."

The pandemic wasn't the only call for change and adjustment. Jack experienced a position change, from quarterback to running back, while the entire squad acclimated to a new voice as head coach Matt Coyne and his staff took over the program this past February.

"It's definitely a different energy than last year," said Jack. "Just being able to get the Spring Bowl in, which was huge to get to know them. This league (NESCAC) is hard, so having that time to get to know them in the spring was a major benefit and I think that relationship developed pretty easily. I think we were in a really good spot this year because of that."

With both brothers scheduled to graduate this December, what does the future look like?

"I'll be working at a cybersecurity company down in Dallas, Texas," said Sean, a two-time winner of the Garnet Gridder MVP award. "I'm looking forward to it. I was able to do an internship this summer, and I was able to live down there too for three weeks so I kind of know what it's like already."

Jack, a politics major, is still planning his next steps, but his time at Bates will forever be a part of him wherever he goes.

"Our friend group has always been super strong since the time we got here," said Jack. "Just the memories of hanging out in the dorms, the locker room before practice, and just hanging out with all your buddies, those are definitely the times I'll remember. I think it's unique to hear how close everybody is here at Bates. That was one thing that was important for me coming here. We saw how close everyone was, and I think that still holds true today."

Close ... like brothers.

Original source can be found here