Bryant Bulldogs football

Bryant Bulldogs football
2015 Bryant Bulldogs football team
First season 1999
Head coach Marty Fine
12th year, 7049 (.588)
Stadium Bulldog Stadium
Year built 1999
Seating capacity 5,500
Field surface Grass
Location Smithfield, Rhode Island
NCAA division NCAA Division I FCS
Conference Northeast Conference
Past conferences Northeast-10
All-time record 9760 (.618)
Playoff appearances 2
Playoff record 0–2
Conference titles 2
Colors Black and Gold
         
Website bryantbulldogs.com

The Bryant Bulldogs football program represents Bryant University in college football. The Bulldogs are members of the Northeast Conference and compete at the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision level. Since its inception in 1999, the team has played its home game at Bulldog Stadium in Smithfield, Rhode Island. Bryant's head coach is Marty Fine, who has held the position since the 2004 season.

History

Bryant University football was created in 1999, since its inception it has quickly become one of the more powerful teams in its conference. Also, they Bryant football has had some of the best home crowds the conference has seen. The Bulldogs' fans have also been known to travel well. Bryant has only had 2 coaches since its inception.

The first Bulldog coach was Jim Miceli who coached the team from 1999 until 2003. The second and current Bulldog coach is Marty Fine, who has coached the team from 2004–present. Marty Fine used to be an assistant head coach at Iowa State University before coming over to Bryant University. In only his third year as head coach he brought the Bulldogs to the playoffs.

Bryant made the playoffs in its 8th season as a team, and also had the honor of hosting the first round game. The played against West Chester University. The crowd was the largest recorded in Bryant's short history, they had 5,434 fans in attendance. The game came down to the final drive, but Bryant came up short throwing an interception around the West Chester 20 yard line.

With Bryant's recent success, not only in football, but in all sports they are looking at making the move to Division I. Bryant was considering three conferences; Northeast Conference, Patriot League, and Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. With the move to Division I, Bryant would have the ability to offer scholarships to its football players for the first time in program history. After a long search and finally an invite Bryant accepted an invite to the NEC and started competing Division I in 2008-09. They have been playoff eligible and a core member of the NEC by 2012.

The beginning, the Miceli era

Bryant Bulldogs football started in the fall of 1999. They played their first season in front of great support. In their home opener on against Mount Ida College the team packed the stands with 4,817 fans. From 1999-2002 the team operated at around .500, they showed signs of great play, but still showed that they were a young team. The team was showing improvement and the fans were enjoying it. Bulldog Stadium has been drawing fans since the beginning, on the other hand the team was not doing as well. In 2003 it was an all time low and the end of the Miceli era. The team posted a 3-7 record, with two losing streaks of three. With the resignation of Coach Miceli after the 2003 season. Which led to the time of change at Bryant and in athletics it began with the addition of coach Marty Fine.

The time of change, the Fine era

Marty Fine took over the football team in the 2004 season. 2004 was a major year for Bryant, it went from Bryant College to Bryant University, this change was the stepping stone to all future university moves. One of those included athletics; and coach Fine was a piece to the puzzle. In his first season he posted a .500 record, but everyone around the program saw the direction he was taking the team. Being an assistant head coach at Iowa State University, he brought the drive and expectations of a Division I program with him. During the next two seasons under Marty Fine the team has posted 7-3, and a 8-3 records (0-1 in playoffs). He has also brought the hype to the program that was needed.

Under Marty the team has brought in many Division I transfers the most notable is Lorenzo Perry, a transfer from UMass Amherst. Lorenzo Perry in just two years broke almost all the rushing records at the university. He was also a finalist in the Harlen Hill Award, the Heisman Trophy for Division II, while he did not win the trophy he did make the NCAA All-American Team. During his short four-year tenure, he has become the all time leader in wins for Bryant football and has turned the program around and brought in great recruiting classes.

The biggest move in the Fine era was the move to Division I. Under coach fine they had three consecutive winning seasons before the move to Division I. The team also had its longest win streak at seven straight to start the season. All these accomplishments sent the team up perfectly for the transition. In 2008 the team began to give its first scholarships and began play in the top division of college athletics.

All-time records

Coaches

Coach Years Record Win %
Jim Miceli 1999–2003 26-15 .634
Marty Fine 2004–present 71-45 .612
Totals 1999-2014 97-60 .618

Series

Opponent Record Last Win Streak
Albany 2-2 2011 Lost 1
American International 3-6 2011 Won 2
Assumption 10-0 2013 Won 10
Becker 1-0 2006 Won 1
Bentley 4-5 2007 Won 3
Brown 0-1 ---- Lost 1
Bucknell 1-1 2014 Won 1
Central Connecticut St. 3-4 2014 Won 3
C.W. Post 1-4 2007 Won 1
Duquesne 4-3 2014 Won 2
Fordham 1-1 2010 Won 1
Gannon 1-0 2003 Won 1
Hofstra 0-1 ---- Lost 1
Holy Cross 1-0 2013 Won 1
Iona 1-0 2008 Won 1
Liberty 0-1 ---- Lost 1
UMass Amherst 0-1 ---- Lost 1
UMass Lowell 2-0 2002 Won 2
Maine 1-3 2014 Won 1
Marist 0-2 ---- Lost 2
Merrimack 6-6 2014 Won 5
Monmouth 1-5 2012 Lost 1
Mount Ida 1-0 2001 Won 1
Pace 8-0 2007 Won 8
Rhode Island 0-1 ---- Lost 1
Robert Morris 6-1 2014 Won 1
Sacred Heart 3-3 2012 Lost 1
Saint Anselm 7-3 2010 Won 5
Saint Francis (PA) 5-1 2014 Won 1
Southern Connecticut St. 4-6 2009 Won 2
Stonehill 8-1 2011 Won 8
Stony Brook 1-2 2014 Won 1
Wagner 4-2 2013 Won 1
West Chester 0-1 ---- Lost 1

Year by year performance

Coach Season Record Home Away Win % Average (Total) Home Attendance
Jim Miceli 1999 3-2 2-0 1-2 .600 2,940 (5,880)
Jim Miceli 2000 6-3 4-1 2-2 .666 2,181 (10,905)
Jim Miceli 2001 7-2 4-1 3-1 .777 3,221 (16,105)
Jim Miceli 2002 6-3 3-1 3-2 .666 2,912 (11,648)
Jim Miceli 2003 4-5 3-1 1-4 .444 2,706 (10,824)
Marty Fine 2004 5-5 2-3 3-2 .500 3,305 (16,525)
Marty Fine 2005 7-3 5-0 2-3 .700 3,999 (19,995)
Marty Fine 2006 8-3 5-2 3-1 .750 4,226 (29,582)
Marty Fine 2007 8-3 4-0 4-3 .750 4,686 (18,744)
Marty Fine 2008 7-4 4-1 3-3 .637 5,302 (26,510)
Marty Fine 2009 5-6 3-2 2-4 .475 4,617 (23,805)
Marty Fine 2010 7-4 6-1 1-3 .637 4,391 (30,742)
Marty Fine 2011 7-4 4-2 3-2 .636 5,929 (35,572)
Marty Fine 2012 4-7 2-4 2-3 .364 3,288 (19,723)
Marty Fine 2013 4-7 3-4 2-3 .364 3,581 (25,064)
Marty Fine 2014 8-1 5-0 3-1 .889 3,533 (17,665)
Totals 1999-2014 97-60 59-23 38-39 .618 3,846 (315,412)

References

    External links

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