Numbers game: Butler County high school football stars explain the meaning behind their jersey numbers
There are 100 to choose from, but each has a different meaning to every player that pulls them on.
Let’s take a look at why 10 of Butler County’s football stars wear the jersey numbers they do.
As Will Ferrell’s character says in “Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby,” if you’re last, you’re first.
Wait, that’s not it.
“I wasn’t going to have a number eligible to play quarterback, so I ended up getting No. 1 because nobody else picked it,” said Baggetta, Butler’s quarterback/middle linebacker, who’d worn No. 7 or No. 9 in every sport. “And since then, I’ve ridden with it. … I think it fits well.”
The Karns City passer doesn’t mind tucking the ball and running. His digit has to be a nod to that, right?
“(People think) Ben Roethlisberger, Michael Vick ... but no,” Johnston said.
Instead, Johnston was thrown his jersey number in T-ball as a 6-year-old. He’s worn it ever since, except for junior high football, when he wore No. 11 because an upperclassman had dibs on No. 7.
When Kresinski, a linebacker/tight end, pulls his jersey on, he’s not just representing himself. He’s honoring a late friend, Jake Cooper, who wore the same number in baseball.
“Honestly, I like the single digit, but we had one of our good friends when we were little, it was about third grade, he passed away,” Kresinski said. “It was always No. 7 for him. … He was a good baseball player. (His) family’s super nice. I love talking to them, always.
“I was like, ‘If someone’s gonna wear it, I might as well try to represent it well.’”
Operating one of the most potent offenses in the WPIAL, Felitsky’s choice is a nod to one of his mentors, a former Rutgers and NFL signal-caller.
“My offensive coordinator, Mike McMahon, wore it, so I just wanted to play for him — and that’s why I took it,” Felitsky said. “He used to tell me about how when he played, he didn’t get his first offer until senior year. He was a late bloomer, but it worked out for him.”
The number is the same the Pittsburgh Steelers’ future Pro Football Hall of Fame passer wears.
“I like Aaron Rodgers. I also like Lamar (Jackson), but I wouldn’t say I have a similar play style to him,” Felitsky said.
The Yellowjackets’ senior quarterback also wears No. 1 on the lacrosse field.
“But that’s because 11 is like a triple XL,” Ross said.
Since he was 4 years old, he’s sported No. 11, which he says is his lucky number. He’s never worn a different digit on the gridiron.
Karns City senior tailback Hunter Scherer used to wear No. 22.
“My older cousin, Jayce (Anderson) … graduated from here,” Scherer said. “He was a running back like me. He hit 1,000 yards and he came second or third in the (Butler Eagle) Scoring Trophy. He was like, ‘You should pick up No. 23.’”
Anderson rushed for 1,033 yards and 10 touchdowns on 123 carries as a senior in 2021. The Gremlins won the District 9 Class 2A title that season.
Receivers don’t usually wear numbers in the 30s. Hein, a Sacred Heart commit, isn’t your run-of-the-mill wideout, though.
“In youth, I played all positions,” Hein said. “I was a running back when James Conner was on the Steelers. I was like, ‘I love this guy. I wanna be like him when I’m older.’ I was probably 8 years old.”
Glenn has worn No. 33 since he was 4 years old.
“It was kind of given to me,” Glenn said. “It’s just my lucky number. The double threes. ... I rarely see people wear it. It’s not a common number to really wear, and I like it. It’s unique.
“It kinda symbolizes me.”
Spack didn’t want to follow in someone’s recent footsteps when he picked his number. He didn’t like how digits in the 60s looked and none in the 70s caught his eye, which left him with two options.
“I kind of went, ‘Well, right now, for me, it’s 53 or 54.’ And I thought 54 had a bit more pizzazz to it,” Spack said. “I’m trying to make 54 have that kind of status where (for future Butler players) it’s like, ‘Oh, I want that number.’”
Franklin, a senior offensive tackle, sees his number everywhere, but he knows that’s probably because it means so much to him. It didn’t when he was choosing as a Planets freshman, though.
“It was honestly because we didn’t have a lot of jerseys in my size, and we had big seniors that year,” Franklin said. “So it was literally the only jersey left. I think it was a 2X. ... So I had to go with it.”
