Hot Mic Interview: NDSU wide receiver Bryce Lance is ready for his time to shine on the offense

this is hot Mike hot Mike on the networks of wda w here's Dom ISO welcome back everybody hour two of hot Mike ready to rock and roll here on this Tuesday Morning Briant stram Barnesville head football coach going to join us about a half hour as the Trojans are into day two of fall Camp last year's double A Runners up made it all the way back to US Bank Stadium 13-1 last season high expectations as there are every year really neat uh situation on his coaching staff as well we're going to chat about that coming up uh later on in the show we were talking some buis and football in our first hour with Mike mcy and one of the guys that has emerged over the last I'd say five or six months is Bryce Lance and we've covered Bryce extensively since his days at Marshall High School when he was getting recruited notably by NDSU that happened during his brother's rise to prominence here and obviously when Trey uh decided to leave for the NFL draft I believe it was in that same window that Bryce decided to commit to come play football at NDSU and he's been under that shadow since he arrived here in the fall of of 2021 and it's been a slow progression I think he'd even have been it you're going to hear that in his comments here in just a few minutes that he red shirted in 21 behind you know tremendous receiver group that was led by Christian Watson the last couple years he's been a special teams guy he picked up his first career catch last year in the game against Maine but still was waiting for that that chance that opportunity to get out there and then it finally happened obviously this spring with the departure of Zack matthysse now Eli green really didn't practice a whole much during the spring either and that with Eli's departure Bryce Lance has the opportunity and frankly he has not done growing either he is all of 6 fo5 that you'll see uh in our interview and he has earned rave reviews from the offensive staff and even some members of the defensive staff about what he's been able to do on the field during spring football and has carried over to fall Camp uh we had a chance to catch up during bison media day to ask him about the upcoming season expectations and also uh dealing with his big brother's big shadow of course with Trey being now with the Dallas Cowboys our conversation here with Bryce Lance you have been the talk of everybody head coach offensive coordinator wide receiver coach QB coach saying boy Bryce has had a had a great spring and we've already seen it translate from the summer into the fall when I say that what tell me what goes through your mind that means a lot man I I'm just here to do whatever my team needs me to do man I I mean I'm super blessed to be in this position and um worked really hard to get here and I'm just excited excited for the opportunity this season for sure does it feel like a long time coming I mean obviously you're here it's your fourth year people think well okay he hasn't played a ton yet he's only got one catch is it frustrating is it okay just Hey I Just Gotta Buy I gotta be patient yeah 100% I think that's what's so special about this program is you know you do your time you know I worked my butt off to get on special teams and and uh you know that was that was my role for the past couple years and I embraced it um I loved it and you know I'm just my only goal is just keep expanding my role in this program and do whatever I can did you ever think like maybe it's not GNA happen here no honestly I didn't I think I just had a really I had uh I got faith in myself and also the staff um coach Kramer um I just knew you know they had they have faith in me for my future year um and that was really beneficial to me as well have you grown as well have you like have you gotten taller since I think you have since you got here I don't know we don't we don't really measure ourselves around here but everyone says that I haven't measured myself taller that's a good thing I appreciate that I appreciate that well CU I can remember not too far from here you and your dad are over here when you're still a senior in high school watching your brother go through practice take me through that that that whole recruiting process for yourself you're your own guy but you know what Trey's here this I think I want to be here as well yeah yeah it was uh it was kind of weird recruiting the recruiting process just because um was Co then Co yeah too so um I didn't even get the chance to do an official visit but I've been here so many times you had you knew I I knew I did know what NDSU was I was grateful enough to have you know a brother that went here who was pretty good um but yeah uh just you know from day one the staff treated me uh as me and they they they let me know that um so that was something I super appreciated of um obviously they didn't ignore the elephant in the room like Trey was still there at that point so um but yeah I think that um they've really looked at me as my own person and that's something I've been super grateful for the times that he's been able to come back how special has that been for you personally to have your brother back and and be able to work with you as well when you come back yeah really cool man obviously you know me and my brother are really close um and we support each other till till the end so um any chance that I can go see him or he can see me is is a special moment for sure can he still come around here without getting just flooded with people can he sneak around and enjoy himself or no you know he's he's he was here this summer so I you know when he's when he's out when he's out uh when he's here he definitely has a hood up a hat on he's not the biggest attention seeker so correct yeah yeah so so no it's it's good he likes visiting when he can what have you told him about how Spring ball went and getting ready for the fall for you personally what kind of conversation have you had with him yeah so in May I had a chance to go out there and work with him and um catch for him and you know always had some good talk and you know about my goals his goals and you know I I've just said you know my only goal is just to work hard and do whatever I can for this team and just keep you know keep extending my role so it's been good we've had good conversations and and I know he's always proud of me so does it seem surreal you have to take the brother part out of it that I'm catching passes from an NFL quarterback is it hard is it hard to separate the two not hard at all because i' I've been doing my whole life so it's it's really I mean of course he's Trey but he's also a backup quarterback for the Cowboys yeah yeah super super cool situation for sure but not not hard to separate from me so brillan I talked to you yesterday he said I know who the better Lance is and he plays for us I know brayan's pretty he's got a lot of bravado to but when he says that what how much confidence does that give you when you hear that oh my gosh tfold man I mean he's a leader in our room um he knows how it's done he knows how to get stuff done so um just to hear him have confidence in me and I know he he pours confidence in me every day in meetings at practice so um just the faith he has in me means the world means the world and I've looked up to him for a long time so with Zach and Eli gone there's obviously there's opportunities there how much are you looking to say I can do that I can step into that role and I can be I can be the guy for cam I can be the guy for Cole yeah super happy for those guys um but yeah like I said I think I think my goal is not to you know step May necessarily step in and take someone's take someone's place but just to do what my team needs me to do honestly you know if that's if that's making a play if that's going catch a ball I'll go do that if that's going to make a block um you know take the ball and run whatever I got to do just I just want to win football games do you what are your own expectations for yourself personally for 2024 yeah you know that's a tough question just because my goal is to win like I I came here to win national championship I want to be you know last National Championship you won I was um true freshman so um I want I just want to be a part of that man that that's my goal I want to be a part of that I want to be up on that stage knowing I did something to help contribute what tell me the different traits everybody in the room has and what what do you bring differently to to the wide receiver room uh you talking like personality wise personality and on the field atically wise yeah uh we're a super deep room man uh when we have been since I've gone here so um you know Raja and brilin studs obviously but you know they bring that leader aspect Tyler to herck as well leader aspect has been there um and just know how to get stuff done um I think I bring you know I'm just trying to honestly follow those guys because they've paved the way and they've learned from some really good leaders as well um and then they younger guys coming up um John gor has been doing really well but guy Collins our true freshman have been doing really well in cam you know it's been the first three days but you know it's a shock but they've been doing really well as well so I'm excited the opener up is against Dion Sanders and Colorado I know everybody's been thinking about it now it's here think emotions will be for that one for the opener I know it's the next game but there's a different there's a different swag with that one no yeah no 100% I mean obviously we know who we're playing um we can't ignore that but um I think we yeah that's going to be a really cool game but we've just been really focused on what we've got going on here because it's we know it's going to be something special but yeah I mean we've been you know we've been preparing all summer I mean all since last winter so um we're excited we're excited to have the kind of spring you did how much did that springboard you into the summer workouts in Fall Camp a lot a lot man you know it's just there's so much a difference than um you know knowing stuff in meetings and then doing that on the field and I think this spring I really took to that I'm like I got the chance to make some plays and um you know I've really just kind of stepped forward um in the summer as well got better um but yeah it's it's helped me a lot you feel like you've been you know doing this for since like your junior year high school or even earlier tell me about that and been kind of being in being in the spotlight since basically your sophomore year high school yeah definitely weird just because you know Marshall Minnesota's not a big Talent so grew up grew up there um but um yeah I I remember um it was my yeah Junior I think in high school and I came home from school and there was just like a whole camera crew in my living room and I was like what's going on like I got to I think I'd practice right after I like I got to go they're like no we need to ask some questions I was like but yeah stuff like that definitely definitely a shock especially around the draft time but yeah definely it it's been cool though for sure and it when do you still have moments as a family can you still do that to you go and just just have moments as you guys yeah my mom my mom is definitely big on family time so should definitely yeah definitely definitely finds time of squeeze anytime that we can all get together you know she cherishes and um but we were we go on try to go on many trips as we can together get together as many time many times we can what has Trey told you about Dallas and the opportunity obviously here we are it's August he's going to play I imagine quite a bit that how much excited is he for what's to come this month yeah he's super excited man he loves Dallas loves the Cowboys um you know he's excited for his situation there and his only goal is to compete honestly he's excited for the preseason games to show it you know how hard he's been working this offseason and you know to go produce so how much do you guys just don't even talk football when you talk do you just sayy just what's going on can you do that yeah we rarely talk football honestly yeah uh yeah we have a lot to talk about obviously but yeah I mean it's definitely a nice thing to have um my brother you know being playing at such a high level and you know um you know picking his brain when I need to but yeah we definitely have a lot of other stuff to talk about about football other than football last question is and this seems weird but the quarterbacks you have here one being righty one being Lefty is it different to adjust to how they throw the ball is there a different way that that they throw it or no not for me honestly I I was was telling um a different interviewer that um a lot of times I don't even look who's in I just hear the play I just got to know my job so if I got to go catch it if I got to go block you know that's what but yeah not for me no to get that first career catch last year what did that mean and just I got I want more it was it was it was like IAT more situation but um yeah super exciting it felt kind of like a kind of a weight lifted off of my shoulders a little bit um but super cool and yeah excited to hopefully get more of those this there's our conversation we had with Bryce Lance NDSU Junior wide receiver I thought really need in introspection there on his relationship with his brother and I think you look at expectation wise handling that maybe the best way you can no one there are reps out there reps to be earned and each of the times that we have been up to fall Camp he has stood out just as a guy that um is hard to miss he's been making plays you saw a little bit of a montage we put together during uh the Spring Showcase and he was out there making plays all over uh during that that goes on top of what he did during uh all of spring football and he's got all the physical traits there's no doubt about that now it's about can he apply that in a game situation and from what the each of the quarterbacks have told me both cam Miller and Cole Payton that that's a guy that they know they are going to count on in 2024 and the buys are going to need it at that spot knowing full well what they have lost and brillan Henderson and Raja Nelson well not the same guy they are the same size that they need a longer bodied position wide receiver to go and make catches and make plays and he fits that uh Bill to a T and we'll see that is uh one of the many you looking at all the question marks that are out there for Bison football in 2024 offensive line is clearly at the top I think cornerback is clearly up there as well uh wide receiver in running back now or Tim POC has said it he's echoed it several times we're looking who's going to be the Playmakers uh we need to know and that's why I think it's probably that high on the old uh the old checklist of okay where concerns or questions heading into 2024 that's got to be up there and uh we'll see I wanted to share this before we go to break is Eric and I were just doing this a couple weeks ago NSU football just tweeted out the amount of guys that they have in the National Football League so we can save this now I can throw away my Post-It note that I have in the uh in my office these are the 18 guys that are in Fall camps or training camps around the NFL headline as you see with lipkey Watson Cordell Cody ma Chris Bor with the Ravens jabril with the Vikings Josh Hayes who remember was drafted by his hometown bucket Nas Jensen in his second year with the Panthers Zack Johnson who just signed off a UFL Championship with the Browns Jake kis having a heck of a camp he's got a great chance to make the Giants 53 man roster we know Trey Lance with Dallas Jaden price led the Falcons with tackles in their preseason opener against Miami Dylan Raiden's hoping for big things with the Titans Easton stick started the game with the Chargers Jaylen sundell signed with the Seahawks trying to make their team Michael tutsy back for a second year with his hometown Colts Spencer Wy had a sack for the Packers in their preseason opener and Carson Wentz who played a handful of snaps in the Chiefs preseason game I imagine we'll see more of Carson in uh week two of the NFL preseason this coming weekend that is you just go ahead and post that everywhere if you're NDSU football if that's not the best recruiting tool and think of this guys just for a second before we go to break they were all probably teammates at one point outside of probably Bor because Bor graduated in 17 almost everyone else was on the same team Carson was obviously earlier too but think of that lipy Watson Volson Mal were all on that same team 2019 with jabril Cox with Josh Hayes with nas Jensen with Zack Johnson Jake kubis was a red shirt Trey Lance was the quarterback Jadon price was a red shirt freshman Raiden was a senior sundell was on that team tutsy was on that team waji was on that team again I will make the claim 2019 greatest Bison team ever assembled that graphic proves it again otherwise we'll break got a couple emails to get to a couple more in we'll give you the uh the inside on zebie Matthews who's going to make his major league debut for the twins tonight against the Royals we're back on hot Mike on this Tuesday morning right after this