Kentucky senior safety Ty Bryant has added another major honor to a résumé already packed with them, earning the New York Athletic Club Endowed Scholar-Athlete Award, the organization announced Tuesday.
The award goes to a senior football player who blends academic success, on-field production and community leadership, and Bryant checks every box. The Lexington native owns a 3.83 grade-point average, earned a degree in communication from UK in May of 2026 and is now working toward a second major in psychology.
Bryant’s academic track record has been steady throughout his career. He is a two-time Southeastern Conference Fall Academic Honor Roll selection, was named to the SEC First-Year Academic Honor Roll as a freshman and has landed on the UK Dean’s List five times.
In 2025, he became the first Wildcat since Will Levis in 2022 to earn First-Team Academic All-American recognition. He is the 23rd player in school history to receive the Academic All-America honor from College Sports Communicators, and the 14th Kentucky player to be voted a first-teamer.
As a sophomore, he also made the Division I Academic All-District Team.
His impact stretches well beyond the classroom. Bryant serves on UK’s Student-Athlete Advisory Council and the SEC’s Football Leadership Council.
On the field, he has been just as important to Kentucky’s 2026 season under first-year head coach Will Stein. Bryant is a Campbell Trophy finalist and a Lott IMPACT Trophy quarterfinalist, and his production has been central to the Wildcats’ defensive success.
Through 46 career games, Bryant has piled up 230 tackles, five tackles for loss, nine interceptions, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery and five pass breakups. His nine career interceptions tie him for fifth among all current FBS players. This season, he has four picks, tied with teammate Jordan Castell for the SEC lead and good for sixth nationally.
Bryant’s recent run has been especially sharp. He picked off his fourth pass of the season in the win over Vanderbilt, giving him interceptions in three straight games.
He’s the first UK player to do that since Danny Trevathan in 2011. At Oklahoma, he had two interceptions in the win over the Sooners, the second time in his career he has recorded multiple picks in a game against an SEC opponent.
He also did it against Ole Miss. In that game, the 6-foot, 196-pound safety added nine tackles.
Earlier in the season, Bryant grabbed his first interception of 2026 in the win over No. 10/10 LSU.
Against Alabama, he picked up the first sack of his career, getting 0.5 credit on a third-down play while finishing with 10 tackles. He then matched that total in the upset win at No.
9/8 Texas A&M, giving him consecutive double-digit tackle games against ranked opponents.
Bryant has 68 tackles this season, which is tied for second on the team. He has recorded at least five stops in every game and has reached double digits twice. He is nine tackles away from a new single-season career high and has also posted a career-best three pass breakups in 2026.
Over his career, Bryant has four double-digit tackle games and has finished with at least five tackles in 21 contests. He needs 10 more stops to reach 250 for his career.
A three-year letterman, Bryant earned second-team All-SEC honors in 2025 after leading Kentucky with 76 tackles and tying for the conference lead with four interceptions as a junior.
Kentucky returns home Saturday to face Florida. Kickoff is set for 6:15 p.m. ET, and the game will air live on ESPN.
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