Number 13: Carrying on the Tradition

By Skip Snow

Patrick played baseball, basketball, and football at Rocky River High School. But it was with Pirate Football most of all that he truly impacted a program with his attitude, sportsmanship, and talent.

As a freshman, Patrick played some receiver, but his varsity career would be marked by his exploits as a punter. In that role, he was decorated multiple times over at the conference, district, and state levels. Across three seasons, his athletic, booming punts traveled over 2-1/3 miles. He averaged over 40 yards per effort as a junior, and over his career, he set a Rocky River record for punts inside the 20-yard line, with 27 such kicks.

Patrick excelled on that type of play which lies at the nexus of offense and defense. On those key plays, he was the last offensive player to touch the ball, and he put his defense in the best possible position by pinning the opponent deep in its own territory. Patrick arched those kicks into the corner, along the sideline. Certainly as a senior leader but even before then, the dynamic Pirate punter also knew how to serve his team when he himself was on the sideline.

Patrick was fully engaged with teammates and their collective efforts in every practice, before and after games, on bus rides, and in huddles. He was agile, both as an athlete and as a personality. In punt formation or on the sideline, No. 13 was a friend and a leader. More than a special teams player, Patrick was a special team player.

Today, that impacts lives on with a special tradition: each August, during fall practice, the Pirates designate a player they will honor with jersey No. 13 for the upcoming season.

“We try to find the individual that embodies who Patrick was and the characteristics that he had,” said Rocky River head coach Josh Wells, who has served in that role since 2015. “It's not just the on-field player we want to recognize. We want to identify players that exemplify Patrick's intangibles.”

The player is awarded the Maroon & White No. 13 threads after a practice — in front of the entire team and with the Green family on hand to participate.

"What I find to be the most unique part of this tradition," added Wells, "is that we are starting to get to the point where the players who wear No. 13 were so young when Patrick was still with us. They didn't know him personally, in fact they might've been little guys running around with a ball near the south end zone at halftime. But they still knew who Patrick was and how special of an honor it is to be chosen to wear that jersey."

2018 Rocky River High School Football team picture

Patrick punting the football for Rocky River High School

Ptrick and David Tucci in their Rocky River football uniforms

2018 Rocky River Football First Team All Northeast Lakes District including Patrick Green

The tradition also plays out on home Fridays during the season — in a way Pirate fans can be engaged. The Rocky River public address announcer usually announces one No. 13 play each game as just that: "No. 13 the ball carrier," or "tackle by No. 13," with no name given. Sometimes he tags on a "that play rated PG 13."

And the 13s chosen for the honor have been rated highly by coaches in the Buckeye State: three of the first four players to be so recognized by Rocky River Football have gone on to earn First Team all-Ohio nods. Still, the heart of the No. 13 jersey tradition cannot be measured in yards or on a scoreboard. It lies in the honor, love, and respect of the swashbuckling Pirate teammate who wore it so well.

“Patrick's passions were punting and being there for his teammates," said Wells. "He was a young man who changed everyone around him. Everyone knew him and loved to be around him. His personality was infectious. He loved Rocky River Football — the sights, the sounds, being with his teammates under the lights every Friday night. All of it.”