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Gary Bryant III’s tattoo sleeve across his right arm reveals his life story. Along his elbow, the initials GB3 pop out. Closer to his shoulder sits the Baltimore Orioles logo and an Interstate 95 sign, paying homage to his hometown.

And just under his bicep are two street signs intersecting, with one labeled Chuck Street and the other Nancy Drive.

Nancy refers to Nancy Hanke, Bryant’s grandmother. Hanke became a “motherly figure” when Bryant’s mother and father weren’t consistently around. She pushed him to be better than his environment, offering tough love to bring out his best. Hanke died in February 2016 when Bryant was only 12 years old. From there, Bryant knew he needed to figure things out on his own.

“I remember seeing him immediately shift into survival mode,” said Jamie Wood, Bryant’s aunt.

Despite his personal obstacles, Bryant made a name for himself in football. He transferred from South Dakota to Syracuse in the spring transfer portal to fill a much-needed role in the Orange’s linebacker room. Through SU’s first three games, he’s done just that, leading the linebackers in tackles with 17. But for Bryant, it’s about more than the numbers.

He received zero Power Four offers out of high school despite winning MVP of the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference. His parents’ absence created instability throughout his youth. But he’s okay being the underdog. He’s been it his whole life.

“Growing up how I grew up, it made me feel like I didn’t have a choice but to do what I’m doing now,” Bryant told The Daily Orange. “Every day, I remind myself I don’t have anything to go home to. There’s nothing to go back to. So I don’t have a choice but to keep pushing.”

Before Hanke died, she told Bryant she wanted him to graduate from high school and go to college. Neeo Avery, Bryant’s younger cousin, said Hanke was the staple of the family, and Bryant was “her baby.”

Following her passing, Bryant moved in with Wood — his mother’s older sister — intermittently and also lived with his parents sparingly. While Wood said Bryant now has a relationship with his father, that wasn’t always the case.

“(Bryant) had a lot of examples of what not to be and who he didn’t want to be,” Wood said. “So he was able to use that to make himself better.”

Spending time at Wood’s home helped Bryant build his relationship with Avery, Wood’s son. The former four-star recruit and now Maryland edge rusher is just one grade level below Bryant, but he viewed his cousin as an “older brother figure.”

While growing up together, Bryant and Avery rarely played on the same team due to the age gap. Bryant attended North County High School (Maryland) as a freshman and didn’t play football due to a torn ACL. Then the duo attended a football camp in the summer of 2019 at Our Lady of Counsel High School. There, they’d have their shot to play together.

Falcons head coach Andy Stefanelli quickly circled Bryant and Avery as two of the top players among the 180 kids at the camp. But he didn’t realize the two came together. It was already July, and the school’s admission deadline had long passed. At the end of the camp, Stefanelli met with Bryant and Avery and found out Wood worked at a hospital nearby. The solution? Bryant would permanently move in with Wood and Avery.

“It’s amazing he could be that mature and responsible at such a young age, given some of the things you know he was going through,” Stefanelli said.

Avery said that after that camp, he and Bryant realized they’d chase their National Football League dreams together. But it didn’t come easy. They lived about an hour from Good Counsel and woke up at 5 a.m. daily so Wood could get to work on time. Bryant and Avery then arrived at school at 6 a.m. and worked out together before going to class. After a long day of classes and practice, Avery said they’d get home at 9 p.m. Rinse and repeat.

But it was just how Bryant wanted it. He was given his shot to escape.

“Football was my outlet,” Bryant said. “It was my way to get away from all the bad things I was seeing as a kid from Baltimore City. I use football as a way to just take out my anger the right way.”

• • •

It wasn’t about the money for Bryant. But he knew he needed to take a shot.

Bryant evolved into an FCS All-American in 2024. His 103 tackles garnered interest from other schools, but Bryant stayed at South Dakota throughout the spring. However, once the spring transfer portal opened, he entered.

He knew he was taking a risk. Bryant visited schools like USC, Cal and West Virginia but quickly realized he was looking for a “family feel.” Some schools pressured him to commit before making other visits, but he told each school he would at least visit; he was a man of his word.

The Orange entered the picture late in the process. Stefanelli received a call from SU assistant running backs coach — and Baltimore native — Devin Redd. Bryant seemed close to committing elsewhere, per Stefanelli, but still agreed to connect with Redd and Syracuse’s staff. After his visit, Bryant felt the sense of family he yearned for.

“My original plan was to go back home, sit on it for a day or two and then make my decision,” Bryant said. “But after going back to the hotel, it was just a gut feeling that I was supposed to be here.”

Bryant made the calls to confirm his decision, including one to Wood. She trusted his choice, knowing only he’d know what was best for himself.

Syracuse head coach Fran Brown described the idea to bring in Bryant simply: he had over 100 tackles, and the Orange had no returners with numbers anywhere close to that.

Bryant didn’t know anyone on the roster before he entered the program. Fellow linebacker Derek McDonald said Bryant’s more reserved, but the work speaks for itself. True freshman Antoine Deslauriers added that Bryant is his go-to guy if he has schematic questions.

At SU, Bryant uses his instincts to disrupt opposing offenses. He said he’s playing more freely with the Orange, differing from simply filling gaps at South Dakota.

He feels at home at Syracuse. And for all the right reasons.

“He loves football. He loves to compete,” Brown said. “He’s a man’s man.”

Zoey Grimes | Design Editor

• • •

Bryant and Avery had one barbell set and a dream. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the cousins needed to find a way to get a pump. With gyms closed across the country, they’d bring chairs from their kitchen onto the outdoor balcony. Then, two 45-pound plates helped them produce any workout they could.

While growing stronger during quarantine, the pandemic altered Bryant’s recruitment. Good Counsel didn’t have a fall schedule and played a limited one in the spring. The transfer portal grew wild. Athletes gained extra eligibility. And as a result, players like Bryant flew under the radar.

Bryant didn’t receive much interest until his senior season, when his first offer came from Bryant University in July 2021. Other FCS schools trickled in throughout the season. One of those was Missouri Valley Conference powerhouse South Dakota.

The Coyotes rarely recruit out of the DMV. Though then-defensive backs coach Miles Taylor was from nearby Silver Springs, Maryland and sought out Bryant alongside outside linebackers coach Abdul Hodge. Both said they were shocked Bryant was still available when they watched his tape. Abdul wondered how local schools like the University of Virginia weren’t involved.

“Once he got (to South Dakota), we pretty much got a steal,” Abdul said.

Bryant admittedly didn’t think he was supposed to be playing at the FCS level. But he recognized that’s how “his cards were played” and he accepted his fate.

Abdul departed for Iowa before Bryant enrolled with the Coyotes. Though when his brother, Elijah Hodge, took over the position, he knew he’d mesh with Bryant. A former Wisconsin linebacker, Elijah became a strong male figure for Bryant, teaching him how to move beyond immature behavior.

In South Dakota’s FCS quarterfinal matchup with UC Davis last season, Elijah nearly benched his star linebacker following a mental error. While giving Bryant “raw” feedback, Elijah said Bryant made direct eye contact and took accountability, convincing Elijah to keep him in the game. On the next drive, Bryant intercepted a pass in the end zone to seal the victory.

“He’s resilient and he’s gritty,” Elijah said. “You can come to him very direct and transparent with any type of feedback, and he’s going to accept it like the man that he is.”

Gary Bryant III gets ready for the next play in Syracuse’s battle against then-No. 24 Tennessee. Bryant, a transfer from South Dakota, is helping to replenish an SU linebacker corps that was depleted after last year’s departures. Leonardo Eriman | Photo Editor

• • •

Resilience and grit aren’t built in a day. The traits are molded over time. When tragedy strikes. When resources grow thin. When a burden is carried.

At 22, Bryant is rarely home in Baltimore. Wood estimates he’s been back about two or three times a year since enrolling at South Dakota. He stays connected with his family largely over FaceTime, but he’s become a parental figure for his 18-year-old sister, Niyah. Wood said Bryant brought her with him to South Dakota and now Syracuse, helping her find work and build her future.

“(Bryant) was molded to be who he is from experiencing things that he did not want to be around,” Wood said. “He spends a lot of time making sure he’s never any of that.”

Bryant’s “why” has changed over the years. In the past, it was his family. He said it’s recently shifted to himself. Not in a selfish way. But he knows he’ll eventually raise kids of his own. He wants to be the best version of himself when that day arrives, using football as a vehicle to build generational wealth unfound in his family’s history.

Like football, life has its pivotal plays. Turnovers. Fourth downs. No challenge on the gridiron matches what Bryant’s already overcome.

Just look at his right arm.

Along his wrist reads “Mamba Mentality.” Above that, a snake wraps around the logo for Dream Chasers Records. He’s living part of his dream at Syracuse. The next step is changing his life for good.

“I’m trying to break my cycle of bad stuff that’s been happening in my family. All the positive things would come out of the game, I took advantage of at a young age. I’m continuing to keep that going,” Bryant said.

Published on September 17, 2025 at 10:27 pm
Contact Aiden at: amstepan@syr.edu | @AidenStepansky