DETROIT – As freshmen showed up to the football facilities at the University at Buffalo in June, Bulls coach Maurice Linguist said he took many of them, individually, and made a beeline toward James Patterson.
“We have added so many new players, and truthfully, I tell them, ‘If you want to know what to do, get with James,’ ” Linguist said. “Just follow James. If you want to know how to do it on the field, off the field, and in all areas, and kick butt in all areas, just follow this guy right here. He’s got the blueprint.”
This is the season when Patterson truly has the opportunity to make a name for himself. Not that he hasn’t done that, as he’s helped the Bulls become one of the MAC’s consistent winning programs.
The senior from Glenn Dale, Md., is a two-year captain for UB, and was the team's leading tackler last season, when he was named a first-team All-Mid-American Conference selection at inside linebacker. He has been added to the Butkus Award watch list for best linebacker in college football, and the Bednarik Award watch list for the best defensive player in college football.
People are also reading…
This is the year, though, where he will reiterate that he is more than just Jaret Patterson’s twin brother.
“I’ll do it through my play, and through my leadership, and nothing else,” Patterson said July 20 at the MAC Media Day at Ford Field. “Nothing new. Keep it plain and simple. I’m still the same guy who doesn’t really like all the shine and the glory, I’m still the guy who likes to do the dirty work and stay under the scenes. That’s me. That’s always going to be me, and I’m never going to change from that.”
In his own way, Patterson thrived as he worked in the shadows of his brother’s limelight. As Jaret Patterson ran for 1,072 yards and 19 touchdowns in six games last year, James was an integral part of a defense that allowed a conference-low 360.4 yards per game. He had 63 tackles, two pass breakups, an interception and a forced fumble last season.
In Linguist’s first 10 weeks on the job, he already has seen how the linebacker has committed to the new coaching staff’s philosophies.
“James is going to have an outstanding year because he has bought in,” Linguist said. “He is focused. He has a chip on his shoulder. He has something to prove, and he is going to play lights-out football for us this year. I can’t wait to coach him and watch him do it, and watch him lead our defense and our team.”
But as a captain, James Patterson learned the value of how to interact with others. His first year as a captain, in 2019, he had to adjust to a leadership role. He set an example by actions more than by what he said to teammates. In the last year – particularly a season in which so much was dictated by Covid-19 restrictions, which at one point didn’t allow for much personal interaction – he learned the value of having a conversation with others, or how to motivate people to reach a goal.
“Learn how to say it, and when to say it,” Patterson said. “And when not to say it. Learning how to come after someone and tell them to do the right thing, or knowing how to encourage somebody. Knowing the difference between things like that. And to understand where some of my teammates are coming from, and how to talk to them in certain situations.
“I want to be more of a guy who is going to be there for them.”
As UB prepares to open its preseason practices Aug. 4, and prepares for its season opener at 7 p.m. Sept. 2 against Wagner at UB Stadium, a casual observer of the program would easily lament the fact that the Bulls lost Patterson’s older brother from last year’s roster. Jaret signed as an undrafted free agent with the Washington Football Team in April, and left UB as one its most prolific running backs in recent history; he was the program's second all-time leading rusher (3,884 yards), behind Branden Oliver (4,049 yards), and its all-time leader in rushing touchdowns (52).
But James, Jaret’s younger brother by 20 minutes, now stands on his own in football – and is in his first offseason without his brother by his side. Not just his first season at UB, but his first football camp ever, since they began playing organized football in the suburbs of Washington, D.C., when they were in elementary school.
In fact, before this year, the longest they had ever been physically separated was for a week, when James went on a senior class trip.
“It’s been crazy,” James Patterson said. “I miss him, but at the same time, he is just a phone call away. We’re doing what we both love, and that’s football, but at the same time, we take different paths. Nothing is wrong with that. I’ve had to tell a lot of people that, that nothing is wrong with that. He took the chance to go to the NFL. He is running with that. He is living his dream. That’s my dream, as well, but right now, I have a different path.”
Patterson hoped to get home for a few days prior to the start of UB’s fall camp to see Jaret practice with the Washington Football Team during its training camp.
Seeing, though, his brother following his own dream motivates Patterson that much more.
“I’m going to see what that is about, and instead of hearing his words about what it’s like, I’m going to see the action,” James Patterson said. “I can’t wait to see him be in action and compete like he does, and see that smile on his face, like a little kid. He has always loved the game.”
