WALTHAM, Mass. – Strong safety Nick Athy (Holliston/Holliston HS) and right tackle Jack Hansbury (Tyngsboro/Chelmsford HS) will serve as captains of the 2018 Bentley University football team, head coach Bill Kavanaugh announced.

Athy, who has played in every game for the Falcons over the last three seasons, is coming off a standout junior campaign in which he earned first-team All-Northeast-10 Conference and Academic All-Northeast-10 accolades. A finance major who has started 17 of Bentley's last 18 games, he was also voted to the 2017 CoSIDA Academic All-District team.

Athy had a nose for the ball last season with his stat line including four fumble recoveries, three interceptions and two fumble recoveries. He was tied for second nationally in Division II in fumble recoveries and his 76 tackles was a team-high total.

The six-foot-three, 290-pound Hansbury has also been an ironman for the Falcons, starting each of the team's last 21 contests and playing every game since his arrival on campus. Last year, he helped Bentley average 30 points and 385.7 total yards per game. During his career, he's lined up at three positions for the Falcons.

Hansbury has excelled in the classroom as well as on the playing field, achieving a GPA over 3.9 as a corporate finance and accounting major.

Bentley, coming off a 6-4 season in 2017, will open Thursday night with a non-conference home game against West Chester University.