# Ben Bryant (American football)

Ben Bryant (born September 17, 1999) is an American professional football quarterback who is a free agent. He played college football for the Cincinnati Bearcats, Eastern Michigan Eagles, and the Northwestern Wildcats.

## Early life

Bryant grew up in La Grange, Illinois and attended high school at Lyons Township High School. He was rated a three-star recruit and initially committed to play college football for the Wisconsin Badgers. His scholarship offer was eventually pulled, reportedly after tweeting about receiving an offer from another school. Bryant ultimately signed a letter of intent to play at Cincinnati.

## College career

Bryant played in one game before redshirting his true freshman season. He spent his redshirt freshman season primarily as the backup to starter Desmond Ridder but started the Bearcats' final regular season game against Memphis after Ridder suffered an injury. Bryant finished the season with 29 completions on 51 pass attempts for 388 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions in seven games played. He also spent the 2020 season as Ridder's backup and passed for 90 yards and one touchdown while rushing for 65 yards and one touchdown.
Following the end of the 2020 season, Bryant transferred to Eastern Michigan. He completed 68.4% of his passes for 3,121 yards with 14 touchdowns and seven interceptions. At the end of the season Bryant re-entered the NCAA transfer portal.
Bryant opted to return to Cincinnati and was eligible to play immediately as a graduate transfer. He was named the starter for the Bearcats' season opener against Arkansas. Bryant started 11 games and passed for 2,732 yards with 21 touchdowns and seven interceptions before suffering a season-ending foot injury. After the Bearcats' 2023 spring practices, he entered the transfer portal for a third time.
On May 5, 2023, Bryant announced his intention to transfer to Northwestern.

### Statistics

| Season | Games | Games | Games | Passing | Passing | Passing | Passing | Passing | Passing | Passing | Passing | Rushing | Rushing | Rushing | Rushing |
| Season | GP | GS | Record | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Avg | TD | Int | Rtg | Att | Yds | Avg | TD |
| Cincinnati Bearcats ||||||||||||||||
| 2018 | 1 | 0 | 0−0 | 6 | 8 | 75.0 | 75 | 9.4 | 0 | 1 | 128.8 | 2 | -4 | -2.0 | 0 |
| 2019 | 5 | 1 | 0−1 | 29 | 51 | 56.9 | 388 | 7.6 | 1 | 2 | 119.4 | 22 | 35 | 1.6 | 1 |
| 2020 | 5 | 0 | 0−0 | 11 | 14 | 78.6 | 90 | 6.4 | 1 | 0 | 156.1 | 6 | 65 | 10.8 | 1 |
| Eastern Michigan Eagles ||||||||||||||||
| 2021 | 13 | 11 | 6−5 | 279 | 408 | 68.4 | 3,121 | 7.6 | 14 | 7 | 140.5 | 87 | -43 | -0.5 | 2 |
| Cincinnati Bearcats ||||||||||||||||
| 2022 | 11 | 11 | 9−2 | 213 | 348 | 61.2 | 2,732 | 7.9 | 21 | 7 | 143.0 | 47 | -118 | -2.5 | 0 |
| Northwestern Wildcats ||||||||||||||||
| 2023 | 9 | 9 | 6-3 | 173 | 277 | 62.5 | 1,807 | 6.5 | 13 | 6 | 128.4 | 60 | -33 | -0.6 | 4 |
| Career | 44 | 32 | 21−11 | 711 | 1106 | 64.3 | 8,212 | 7.4 | 50 | 23 | 137.4 | 224 | -98 | -0.4 | 8 |

## Professional career

Pre-draft measurables :
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump |
| 6 ft 3+1⁄2 in (1.92 m) | 218 lb (99 kg) | 32+1⁄4 in (0.82 m) | 10 in (0.25 m) | 5.02 s | 1.69 s | 2.88 s | 4.46 s | 7.30 s | 27.0 in (0.69 m) | 9 ft 1 in (2.77 m) |
| All values from Pro Day |||||||||||
Bryant went unselected in the 2024 NFL draft. On July 25, 2024, Bryant signed with the New York Jets. He was waived two days later, after the team signed Adrian Martinez.