San Diego State punter Hunter Green switched from jersey No. 29 to No. 93 entering fall camp.
Green’s father, Phil Green, was a walk-on punter and scout team player at the University of Washington who was a member of the Huskies’ 1991 national championship team.
Phil Green wore No. 93.
“I wanted to honor him,” Hunter said after practice this week. “He didn’t really like that number. When I told him why I was wearing it, he was like, ‘Dude, pick your own number.’ I said, ‘No, I want to wear it because of you.’ Because he’s such a big part of why I’m playing and why I give the effort I do.”
Green played the past two seasons at Northern Colorado before transferring to SDSU in January. He made his debut for the Aztecs in last week’s season opener against Stony Brook, averaging 52.3 yards on his four punts.
That would be an NCAA record over an entire season, eclipsing the 51.19 yards a punt SDSU’s Matt Araiza averaged four years ago.
It’s a challenge Green is eager to embrace with every opportunity, continuing with Saturday night’s game at Washington State.
“New place, I feel like I’ve got a lot of expectations,” Green said. “A little bit of nerves, but after I hit my first ball all of that was out the window. I was just flowing with adrenaline, ready to go. It was exciting. It was fun.”
San Diego State punter Hunter Green stretches during a practice on Aug. 5, 2025 in San Diego, California. (K.C. Alfred / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Green displays a composure on and off the field that is beyond his years.
Just a day before SDSU’s opener, he drove to Temecula for a celebration of life for his father. Phil Green died in July following a seven-year battle with ALS. He was 55.
“It was difficult, but I feel like I found the right balance,” Green said. “It was sad but also happy that all these people were here. In the drive back down from Temecula to San Diego to meet the team here at the facility, that’s where I started to get locked in. And then pretty much as soon as I got here, it’s game time.”
SDSU’s Hunter Green punts during last week’s season-opening win over Stony Brook at Snapdragon Stadium. (Justin Truong, SDSU athletics)
Zac Barton, SDSU’s associate head coach and special teams coordinator, told Green to take his time returning to campus.
“My dad is 78 and I would be an absolute wreck,” Barton said. “He made it back in time for the Wednesday walk-thru. … The mental fortitude to be able to separate that and then go out and play the game and perform the way he did, and the way he goes about his day with school, it’s amazing.
“I know he’s a little bit older, but it’s still a new school, a new scheme. Everything is new and different and then to add the stress family-wise, it’s pretty impressive to watch him handle all that. I’ve put my arm around him a couple of times and said, ‘Are you all right?’ But that’s pretty much been it.”
Green, a redshirt junior from Redmond, Wash., is being asked to do more than just catch the ball and kick it. Sometimes he stays in the pocket, while other times he rolls out. He can kick for distance, but is often asked to hit a spot. Each time, Green scans the defense before booting the ball away.
“I don’t think he knows how good of an athlete he is,” Barton said. “He’s 6-4. I think he’s got to learn how to work with a body that’s 235 pounds and stay flexible. He can run. He’s a big kid. His hang time shouldn’t be below 4.5 (seconds). Distance-wise, he needs to be 45-plus every time. His ‘A’ ball is impressive. It’s an NFL ball. He knows what the standard is here. What they’ve done here in the past, he can meet that standard. That’s where he needs to end up.”
Green averaged 46.3 yards a punt last season at Northern Colorado. SDSU’s Tyler Pastula averaged 46.1.
Green was added this week to the Ray Guy Award watch list. He is SDSU’s fourth straight candidate to be the nation’s top punter, following in the footsteps of Pastula, Jack Browning and Matt Araiza, who averaged an NCAA-record 51.19 yards a punt in 2021, when he won the Ray Guy Award.
“There’s certainly pressure because I have expectations for myself and from the coaches,” said Green, who punted with Browning and Araiza in the offseason during an on-campus workout guided by former NFL kicker Nick Novak. “But it’s an honor and it’s fun to go out there and compete with those guys’ (legacy) and also compete with the team. It’s special.”
Hunter Green
Green certainly gained inspiration from his father, who was diagnosed in 2018 with ALS, a terminal neurodegenerative disease commonly referred to as Lou Gehrig’s disease.
SDSU assistant director of development for athletics Steve Becvar met Phil Green when Becvar was executive director for the ALS Association’s Greater San Diego Chapter.
“Phil put himself out there to be an advocate for the disease, an advocate for the cause, just tireless in his work to make the biggest impact on this disease as possible,” Becvar said. “It’s rather remarkable because progression continues. Even when I first met Phil, still pretty chipper, then the progression in terms of his voice, his ability to communicate, but he stayed the course.
“He would jump on those calls and want to continue to make an impact, and that’s what he did. … He was all in to try to figure out how to make (clinical) trials more accessible to more people and funding. He was for others. He was trying to improve the journey for anyone going through ALS.”
What traits does Hunter Green share with his father?
“I can see the conviction in his eyes,” Becvar said. “An uplifting spirit. A joy to be around.”
Hunter Green carries two pictures of his father in his mind’s eye, “healthy before he was diagnosed and then after he was in the wheelchair.” The progression of the disease brought an urgency to their relationship.
“I didn’t know how long he was going to live,” Green said. “He wasn’t my sole reason for coming here. Coach Barton and this team, I fell in love with that. But it was a major bonus that I could come and be around my dad the past seven months before he passed away. I would go up almost every weekend to see him.
“There were talks, like dreams about the NFL and what I want to do after football, but also, when I knew he was getting close to passing away, having a talk with him, thanking him for all the love and all the support. That one was a hard talk. It was probably the hardest I’ve ever cried, but it was a talk I had to have with him. I love him.”
Wearing No. 93 is the most obvious way Green is honoring his father. There is another, more subtle tribute during games.
“Previously, when everyone rushed on the field, some dudes would take a knee and pray,” Green said. “I was never one of those people, but every game this season, I’ll go out there and pray and talk to him before the game. Just try to tap into his energy and have fun and love football.”
San Diego State (1-0) vs. Washington State (1-0)
When: 7:15 p.m., Saturday
TV: The CW (Ch. 6)
Radio: 760-AM
BOX: SDSU’s next great punter?
Hunter Green was added this week to the watch list for the Ray Guy Award, which recognizes the nation’s top punter. Green is the fourth straight Aztecs punter to be listed on the watch list:
Year/Player/Yards per punt
2021/Matt Araiza+/51.19#
2022/Jack Browning/46.1
2023/Jack Browning/45.35
2024/Tyler Pastula/46.1
2025/Hunter Green/46.3*
*average last season at Northern Colorado
+2021 Ray Guy Award winner
# single-season NCAA record
Originally Published: September 4, 2025 at 6:52 PM PDT