\u2014 FOX Deportes (@FOXDeportes) September 21, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n Bryant was a big fan of the play call, of course, but he almost made it clear to the coaching staff that he\u2019d be willing to fulfill a fullback\u2019s more foundational duty \u2014 paving the way through a hole for a running back \u2014 if he ever needed to serve as a decoy.<\/p>\n \u201cI think the trait of any great receiver is being unselfish,\u201d Stepp said. \u201cWe all knew who needed to get the ball, but there were times where he didn\u2019t touch it for a few drives, and before he\u2019d touch it, we\u2019d be like, \u2018On this run play, we need you to go in and crack a safety and block a linebacker.\u2019 He never said one word about it. He\u2019s the ultimate team player. Something he took a lot of pride in this year was taking his blocking to another level.\u201d<\/p>\n Added Bryant, who will take the field with the Broncos for the first time during a rookie minicamp later this week: \u201cMy motto was always, \u2018You block, you get the rock.\u2019 So my main focus was just using my physicality both in the pass game as well as the run game, just helping my running backs get to the end zone.\u201d<\/p>\n The second game-winning play for Bryant came three weeks later in another overtime thriller, this one at home against Purdue. Illinois trailed by three points and faced a second-and-10 from its 27-yard line with only 35 seconds left in regulation. Bryant, lined up outside to the right, made a subtle shake at the line of scrimmage that gave him the room to burst past his defender and haul in a 32-yard catch near the sideline that helped Illinois get in range for a game-tying field goal.<\/p>\n The heroics were only getting started.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re in the huddle and we\u2019ve got the ball first to start overtime, and Pat looks at Coach (Barry) Lunney, our OC, and goes, \u2018Scissors!\u2019 which is one of the play calls,\u201d Stepp said. \u201cCoach Lunney looks at (quarterback) Luke (Altmyer) and goes, \u2018You like scissors?\u2019 Luke goes, \u2018Yeah, let\u2019s run it.\u2019 So Pat essentially called the play in overtime.\u201d<\/p>\n The play had Bryant lined up in a tight alignment on the right side of the formation, just off the tight end. At the snap, he slithered past the linebacker trying to jam him off the line of scrimmage, then navigated between two defensive backs to find just enough real estate in the end zone to haul in a 25-yard, toe-tapping touchdown pass from Altmyer.<\/p>\n Pat Bryant catches the winning touchdown in overtime against Purdue in October. (Ron Johnson \/ Imagn Images)<\/p>\n \u201cMy main focus when the ball is in the air is, \u2018It\u2019s mine, and I\u2019m better than the man that\u2019s in front of me,\u2019\u201d Bryant said.<\/p>\n Stepp could feel Bryant\u2019s self-assuredness since he became his new position coach last year. He couldn\u2019t help but make a comparison.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s just like Courtland,\u201d the coach said.<\/p>\n Stepp coached star Broncos wide receiver Courtland Sutton at SMU for three seasons before he became Denver\u2019s second-round pick in 2018. Sutton made such an impression on his coach during that time that Stepp and his wife named their now 7-year-old son Courtland. What the two now teammates in Denver share, Stepp said, is a humility that belies a sturdy confidence in who they are \u2014 and, just as importantly, who they aren\u2019t \u2014 as players.<\/p>\n \u201cI remember during the pre-draft process with Courtland, people would say, \u2018Is he mean enough to play football? He\u2019s so dadgum nice,\u2019\u201d Stepp said. \u201cI\u2019d be like, \u2018I\u2019m just telling you, he has an unbelievable confidence to him.\u2019 Pat is the same way. He knows who he is. He knows his strengths and he knows his weaknesses.\u201d<\/p>\n Never did that confidence come more to the surface for Bryant than during the top highlight of his career \u2014 an improbable touchdown catch against Rutgers that ended what Stepp called \u201cone of the craziest games I\u2019ve ever been a part of.\u201d<\/p>\n Illinois, trailing 31-30, began the game\u2019s final drive from its 25-yard line with 68 seconds left. Bryant caught a 21-yard pass from Altmyer early in the drive and then drew a 10-yard holding penalty, helping to push the Illini into Rutgers territory. But things still looked bleak for Illinois as it approached a fourth-and-13 from the 40-yard line with 14 seconds left. Head coach Bret Bielema decided to trot out kicker David Olano for a potential game-winning, 58-yard field goal into a driving wind. Just before the snap, Rutgers coach Greg Schiano called a timeout to freeze Olano. The kicker booted the ball anyway, and it barely reached the same zip code as the uprights.<\/p>\n \u201cSo we\u2019re like, \u2018Hell, we can\u2019t kick the field goal. Let\u2019s just go for it,\u2019\u201d Stepp said.<\/p>\n When the ensuing play was called on the sideline, Bryant was tabbed as the No. 2 option. But as he walked onto the field, he caught his coach\u2019s eye. \u201cI\u2019m switching,\u201d he told Stepp. So Bryant moved to the left of a trips formation. As the two receivers to his right pushed up the field in a pair of go routes, Bryant darted underneath into the vacated space. He caught he ball at the 22-yard line with 9 seconds left. When he made the grab, Bryant had enough for a first down and put Illinois in more manageable field-goal range. But there were five defenders in his vicinity.<\/p>\n PAT BRYANT SCORES THE GAME-WINNING TD ON 4TH DOWN! \ud83d\ude31@IlliniFootball<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/ndso5u3X8B<\/a><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/USATSI_24477485-scaled.jpg\")
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