Guess he made the right decision… even if there wasn’t much of a choice.
Riley Green has multiple #1 hits at country radio, Platinum and Gold records to his name, and he is gearing up to release his new album That’s Just Me on September 18th, in addition to joining The Voice this fall as a coach.
And that’s just to name a few accomplishments… so yeah, like I said, a country music career has worked out just fine.
But initially, Riley was focused on sports, and he was actually the starting QB at Jacksonville State University from 2007 to 2009 after walking on. During that time, he started getting into playing music more, and ultimately, decided to try his hand at a music career.
Ultimately, he didn’t graduate because he had missed more than a few classes, and during a recent appearance on The Pat McAfee Show, he revealed that one day at practice, a graduate assistant pulled him into his office and asked how many classes he had “NC’d” that semester, which means failed, and Riley admitted that it was “all of them” except for one class… aqua aerobics. But he did get an A in that one for whatever it’s worth:
“Well, it was a pretty easy conversation or me. It was a graduate assistant coach, came in and got me from 7 on 7 drills and brought me into the office and asked me how many classes did I ‘NC’ that semester.
The answer was, all of them but aqua aerobics. But I had an A in aqua aerobics. So I ended up walking away from football.”
McAfee joked that Riley basically got kicked out of college, and Riley reminded him that he actually had a doctorate degree from Jacksonville State, which is true, he really is Dr. Green:
“So I ended up walking away from football. When you say it like that… just so we’re clear, I got a doctorate from that university, okay? I’m Dr. Green. I’ve got a stethoscope on the bus.”
Of course, it’s not a medical degree, but Riley was awarded an Honorary Doctorate degree from his alma mater, Jacksonville State, in April, and he was named a Doctor of Letters, honoris causa, at JSU’s Spring Commencement ceremony.
He received the degree for his many music career accomplishments, in addition to the support he gives to his hometown, and he was also the keynote speaker at the graduation of the College of Education and Professional Studies.
I’m sure at the time he was disappointed to walk away from football, but like I said, his country music career has really worked out and
@espn Dr. Riley Green 😂 (via The Pat McAfee Show) #funny #lol #rileygreen #countrymusic #football ♬ original sound – ESPN
Riley has released one song from the new album so far called “Think As You Drunk”:
“Think As You Drunk”
Riley is currently on the road for his Cowboy As It Gets Tour, which will wrap up in August before he heads to coach The Voice.
Cowboy As It Gets 2026 Tour Dates:
July 16th, 2026 – Green Bay, WI – Resch Center#~•
July 23rd, 2026 – Salt Lake City, UT – Utah First Credit Union Amphitheatre#~•
August 6th, 2026 – Darien Center, NY – Darien Lake Amphitheater#/•
August 7th, 2026 – Cuyahoga Falls, OH – Blossom Music Center#/•
August 8th, 2026 – Bristow, VA – Jiffy Lube Live#/•
August 13th, 2026 – Camden, NJ – Freedom Mortgage Pavilion#/•
August 14th, 2026 – Hartford, CT – The XFINITY Theatre#/•
August 15th, 2026 – Bangor, ME – Maine Savings Amphitheatre#/•
August 21st, 2026 – Sioux Falls, SD – Denny Sanford#$*^
August 22nd, 2026 – Grand Forks, ND – Ralph Engelstad Arena#$*^
#Justin Moore
~Drake White
$Mackenzie Carpenter
•Hannah McFarland
*Adam Hood
/Zach John King
