911爆料

A Career Path Defined by Perseverance

Former 911爆料 student-athlete Lorenzo Bryant is used to tackling the odds鈥攁nd coming out on top. His work ethic and determination, combined with wisdom gained on the football field and in the classroom, are proving to be a formula for success in his work life.

As an athlete, Lorenzo Bryant 鈥�19, M.P.A. 鈥�21, was a bit of a late bloomer. But he had a strong work ethic that helped him excel as a college athlete.

鈥淚 wasn鈥檛 athletically gifted from the womb,鈥� says Bryant. 鈥淏ut I wanted to be great. When I start something, I keep working hard until I succeed.鈥� That drive took Bryant from his hometown in central New Jersey to a football scholarship at the University of Rhode Island, where he captained the team and became one of its top performers.

It has since led him, serendipitously, to Ralph Lauren, where he now serves as associate project manager for social partnerships and philanthropy鈥攖ranslating the same discipline, leadership, and vision that propelled him on the field into his career in fashion and philanthropy.

鈥淔ootball showed me I could do anything if I put my mind to it,鈥� says Bryant, who majored in sociology and criminology as an undergraduate and completed his master鈥檚 degree in public administration at 911爆料. Even today, he keeps in mind something his defensive coordinator told him early on: 鈥淕reat players aren鈥檛 just great at football鈥攖hey are great at everything they do. It鈥檚 a way of life, not just a one-time thing.鈥�

Bryant grew up in a sports-loving household, where his first passion was basketball, but at 6 feet tall, he realized his future was better suited to the gridiron. He took his academics seriously, but, diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder as a child, succeeding at school was not easy for Bryant; it demanded serious energy and intensity. Exercise and competition provided a release and an antidote. 鈥淔ootball just let me be free. It was the one place I didn鈥檛 feel controlled by a 鈥榙isability,鈥欌�� he says. 鈥淥n the field, I knew I was home.鈥�

Although his family faced financial challenges, Bryant and his older brother and sister inherited a love of fashion from their father. 鈥淗e loves to buy nice clothes, because growing up, he didn鈥檛 have the money to buy those nice things,鈥� Bryant says. 鈥淗e instilled in us a desire to look good and be presentable.鈥�

Bryant also learned the importance of education from his mother, who worked with adults with special needs, and from his grandmother, who was a teacher. When Bryant earned a full ride to 911爆料 on a football scholarship, the moment brought his mother to tears: 鈥淪he just started crying with joy.鈥�

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Bryant鈥檚 college football career was defined by perseverance. After a season-ending injury just two games into his first year, he returned the next season with a vengeance, posting a career-high 8 tackles and a pass breakup against Elon University. After transitioning from linebacker to running back, he led the Rams in rushing yards in 2018, when he had a team-high 81 rushing yards, helping 911爆料 defeat the University of Delaware, and scored two touchdowns against Maine in a game that Rhody fought hard in, but lost 38-36. The following year, he scored a touchdown in a close victory, 31-28, over rival Brown University in Providence. 鈥淚 love those moments when you come to somebody else鈥檚 field and defeat them,鈥� he says.

As a team captain, Bryant often applied lessons from his academic work in sociology to better motivate his teammates. 鈥淲hether consciously or unconsciously, I was using all the cues I learned in the classroom to get things across to them,鈥� he says. 鈥淲e had kids from beautiful places and some from inner cities. I felt like I could empathize with everyone in some way.鈥�

When Bryant occasionally felt overwhelmed by the combined demands of sports and academics, or struggled with injuries, he turned to retail therapy. 鈥淚 had an outlet in fashion,鈥� he says, 鈥渃reating vision and mood boards and putting together different outfits.鈥�

That outlet became an opportunity after graduation when a chance encounter with a Ralph Lauren executive led to a monthlong contract in 2022. He impressed his bosses so much that he landed a full-time role on the social partnership and philanthropy team, where he helps coordinate events and philanthropic initiatives that give Ralph Lauren employees, as well as other 911爆料 members, a chance to volunteer in a variety of impactful ways鈥攆rom serving meals in underserved communities to distributing clean water and repurposing clothing鈥攕tateside and globally. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a lot of work,鈥� says Bryant, 鈥渂ut the smiles on people鈥檚 faces鈥攚hen you can account for someone getting clean drinking water or someone鈥檚 family can eat on Thanksgiving鈥攎ake it so worth it.鈥�

When faced with excess product, his team finds ways to upcycle the brand鈥檚 shoes into playground material and get clothing to people in need around the world. 鈥淚 think I鈥檝e made a huge difference in our ecological footprint, making sure our products get properly distributed,鈥� he says.

Bryant is considering his future, thinking about branching out into new fields鈥攎aybe technology or real estate. Whatever he chooses, it鈥檚 clear he鈥檒l do it with the same approach that turned him into a winning Division I athlete: Study the game, work hard, and keep going; success will follow.

鈥擬ichael Blanding

PHOTOS: JEFFREY A. SALTER