Trip to Washington brings several Bulldogs "home"

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – It has been a year of homecomings in a sense for the Bryant University football team as trips to Stony Brook and Fordham have brought several Bulldogs to within miles of where they grew up.

Now, as the Black and Gold ready to make the programs first trip to Washington, D.C., several Bulldogs will get a chance to play in front of friends and family for the first time.

"I am definitely very excited to play my last game in a Bulldog uniform so close to home," senior LB Christian Martey (Centreville, Va.) said. "The opportunity for my family to watch me play during my college career has been rare due to the distance."

On Saturday, Martey's family and friends will have to travel just under 30 miles from Centreville, Virginia, to watch the Bulldogs take on Howard. The fact that Martey will be playing in his 34th and final game as a member of the Black and Gold also adds a touch to the occasion.

"I look forward to seeing my family, including my two-year-old niece," Martey said. "This will be the first time she has seen me play!"

Senior D'Marco Saunders (Frederick, Md.) will also get to enjoy a little home cooking on Saturday as a family contingent is set to make the roughly 45 mile trip in from Frederick to see Saunders in his final game. After battling injuries in 2017, Saunders has appeared in every game this year for the Black and Gold and will get one more chance to play in front of family and friends.

"It's a great opportunity to play in front of 20-plus friends and family who have never gotten an opportunity to see my play in a college football game," Saunders said.

Juniors Alex Rasmussen (Fallston, Md.) and Gavin Rowley (Hampstead, Md.) are also expected to have large crowds at Saturday's game at Howard. Fallston and Hampstead are both about 60 miles north of Washington.

"I'm thrilled to play close to home," Rasmussen said. "Being a Maryland kid up here, I don't get a chance to play close to home very often and it'll be fun to have all my family and friends at the game. I'm sure my parents are thrilled they won't have to travel too far this weekend, also."

And while the current players are excited about the opportunity to play at "home", head coach James Perry relishes the opportunity it provides him to connect with alums that grew up and still live in the area and those that have found careers in the Washington area.

"A number of alums have already reached out to me and I'm excited to see them all on Saturday," Perry said. "This is a very talent-rich area, one that has been very good to us at Bryant. I think the Bryant business connections throughout the country are particularly strong in the Mid-Atlantic. It's fun for me to connect and to connect the guys and I know they'll be rooting hard for a terrific group of players."

For Saunders, playing in front of family and friends is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of his excitement.

"I'm looking forward to being in an electric atmosphere like Howard with my teammates, playing my best and walking away with a W at "home.""