There’s a line that Garrett Greene’s dad used with him ever since he was a grade-schooler that might tell you everything you need to know about the way he plays football.
There are bumps and bruises that come with every sport you play, but Charlie Greene – Garrett Greene’s dad, a former Major League Baseball catcher and current Milwaukee Brewers bullpen coach – wasn’t going to let them keep his son from staying in the game.
“My dad had a rule for injuries,” Greene said. “Blood or bone – he had to see one of them for me to be hurt.”
If you ever wondered why Greene approaches every play as a West Virginia University quarterback with that full-bore, empty-the-tank mentality, there you go.
There are players in WVU football history who have passed for more yards and touchdowns in their careers. There are players who have run for more yards and touchdowns. Yet there are few that those who know WVU football will be able to say were gutsier than Garrett Greene.
That mentality was instilled in him a long time ago, he said.
“I think it all goes back to how I was raised,” he said. “I can’t say enough to, really, the whole Greene family for raising me like that. So it’s just second nature.”
Greene has had to earn his place in WVU’s lineup. He wasn’t a phenom insta-starter when he arrived on campus from Tallahassee, Florida. He saw the field plenty in his earlier years, but it was mostly as a change-of-pace guy filling in for the starter, someone coach Neal Brown could use for his mobility and athleticism. That showed in his output. In his first three seasons in Morgantown, he ran for nearly as many yards (622) as he threw (644).
When he finally secured the starting job, though, his spirit and mentality helped propel him to another level. He led WVU to its best season under Brown in 2023, nine wins including a Duke’s Mayo Bowl victory. He threw for 2,406 yards and 16 touchdowns and ran for 772 yards and 13 more scores.
The numbers haven’t been as prolific this season. Greene heads into WVU’s regular season finale at Texas Tech with 1,707 passing yards and 12 touchdowns, plus 649 rushing yards and five touchdowns. Injuries had something to do with that. A head injury in the Kansas State loss forced him to sit two and a half games.
(Greene admitted that was actually a modification his dad had to make to his injury rule. For head injuries, he didn’t need to see blood or bone.)
The numbers may be different, but the playing style was the same. Greene keeps plays alive with his legs, darting around behind the line of scrimmage scanning for a receiver that might have broken open at the last minute. If that guy can’t be found, he’ll take off up the field, fighting for whatever yards he can. He’s learned how to slide in his later WVU years, even though it’s not in his nature.
Have there been some bumps and bruises that we haven’t known about, that Greene has played through during his career? Probably, but that also goes back to lessons from his childhood.
“A lot of it goes back to growing up in the locker room with my dad,” he said. “There were a lot of really special talents that were always hurt, and that’s why they didn’t get the call-up or didn’t get the big contract.
“The best ability is availability,” he continued, “so you have to be willing to play through some minor things.”
Greene’s WVU career is winding down, but it’s not over. He’ll lead the Mountaineers into today’s game at Texas Tech. There’s still a bowl game on the horizon. The quarterback will approach those games just as he’s had every other game he’s played in WVU uniform – holding nothing back.
“I hope they just saw a guy that gave everything for the state, everything for his teammates, for his coaches, his family,” Greene said. “It’s been an honor of a lifetime to be able to represent the state and represent this wonderful university. I wouldn’t want it any other way.”
-by Derek Redd
