Tim Ream gets wrapped up in a bear hug. Mark McKenzie daps him up. Tim Weah has a special handshake.
Every time U.S. men’s national team players get off the bus — whether it’s arriving at a training or a game — they’re greeted by their biggest hype man, Harris Patel.
“He’s barking, he’s hugging you, he’s dapping you up, he’s picking you up,” McKenzie told me before a recent pre-World Cup training session. “That shock to the nervous system is sometimes necessary. It shows how much he cares about this team.”
“And it’s times 10 on game day,” Christian Roldan added.
Patel is one of the U.S. squad’s athletic trainers who is on staff for his second consecutive World Cup. The USA starts its campaign vs. Paraguay on Friday at Los Angeles Stadium (9 p.m. ET on FOX/FOX One and streaming for free on Tubi). But it would be doing Patel and the team a disservice if he was simply described as one of their physios.
“He’s an energy guy,” said Weston McKennie, who sometimes likes to joke with Harris and pretend he doesn’t see him while getting off the bus. “It’s like taking a shot of espresso getting off the bus. Whenever you may feel like you don’t have the energy or the jet lag is kicking in, he’s someone that sparks energy and wakes people up.
“I always think that I’m the energy guy of the group. But then he always tops me.”
USA midfielder Malik Tillman alongside team trainer Harris Patel. (Photo by John Dorton/ISI Photos/USSF/Getty Images for USSF)
Patel, who U.S. Soccer did not make available for this story, has been with the team since before the 2022 World Cup. He’s also served at five Olympic Games and 10 World Championships with USA Track and Field, and he was one of a select few trainers inside the NBA Bubble during the COVID pandemic. His resume includes stints with the New York Jets and the Indianapolis Colts, as well as the Alabama and Georgia football programs.
Most importantly, to his athletes, he’s their guy.
“That man is an energizer bunny,” said Ream, who joked that Patel’s hugs are so strong that they give him a good back crack. “He brings such an infectious positive energy. He comes in the morning ready to go, pumping guys up, getting guys really ready to put their best foot forward and put them in a place where they feel comfortable and welcome. And he transfers that energy to each of us every single day.”
Added Weah: “He’s like a dad to all of us. We call him Unc. Just the energy that he brings, the vibes daily, keeping us on track. He’s our physio, so he keeps our bodies right. He has blessed hands, and he’s the guy to go to, and we love him so much.”
‘He’s the OG’
Patel grew up about 30 miles northeast of Atlanta in Suwanee and attended the University of Georgia in the late ’90s. As a college freshman, he was part of the first athletic training and sports medicine programs there, which is where he met his mentor, Ron Courson.
Courson, now Georgia’s Executive Associate Athletic Director for Health and Performance, spent decades leading the school’s sports medicine efforts after becoming Director of Sports Medicine in 1995. He has also worked at multiple Olympic Games and helped shape health and safety policies throughout the NCAA, SEC and NFL.
He knew right away that Patel was special.
“One thing about Harris is, he’s all in,” Courson told me by phone. “He really buys a team concept. He’s got a tremendous work ethic, and he’s going to do whatever it takes to help athletes get well.
“He has an engaging personality and is really dedicated to learning more and trying to grow in the profession.”
Patel was a student trainer at Georgia before getting his masters at Alabama, where he specifically helped out the softball team as a graduate assistant. After two years in Tuscaloosa, he returned to Courson’s staff in Athens.
He later went to physician assistant school at Emory University and has crafted a unique business in concierge sports medicine that’s allowed him to work with a variety of prestigious organizations and famous athletes.
What makes Patel so endearing, though, is the way he connects with people. He’s the type of guy who says hello in a hotel lobby and then immediately introduces you to the two colleagues he’s meeting for breakfast. He’s the one roaming the U.S. training field with water bottles in hand, shouting encouragement — “Let’s go!” — with a huge smile on his face.
USA trainer Harris Patel with captain Tim Ream. (U.S. Soccer/Getty Images)
He also makes a point of paying it forward. Courson said Patel will return to Georgia this fall to speak with student athletic trainers about careers in Olympic sports medicine.
And those relationships don’t end when athletes leave camp. Patel stays in touch with players no matter where they are in the world. When Weah and McKenzie are back with their clubs in France — at Marseille and Toulouse, respectively — Patel regularly checks in, sending texts to see how they’re doing physically and mentally.
“HP, he’s the OG,” McKenzie said. “He’s someone special. When you have somebody who truly cares about you, not just from an athletic perspective but also on a personal level, it’s huge. That shows the kind of staff that we have.”
‘Always On The Cutting Edge’
So much of the focus ahead of this summer’s World Cup is about the 26 players on the USA roster. But manager Mauricio Pochettino has expressed his gratitude for staffers behind the scenes like Patel.
“You can never find words or money to reward their effort,” Pochettino said during a press conference earlier this month.
“I think we have a staff that for sure can compete to win the World Cup. Now we need to translate that energy and everything they provide the players to help the players win.”
Harris Patel with USA midfielder Gio Reyna at a team’s national training center. (Photo by John Dorton/ISI Photos/USSF/Getty Images for USSF)
Aside from his warm demeanor and outgoing personality, Courson says another thing that sets Patel apart is his commitment to learning more about his own profession.
For example: A couple weeks ago, he introduced Courson to a pair of innovative “core shorts” he discovered during a trip overseas. The compression style shorts help manage groin and core muscle issues, which is particularly helpful for soccer and football players who are prone to soft tissue injuries. This model had new technology that Patel was eager to try out.
“I think Harris is one of those people who is always on the cutting edge,” said Courson, who visited Patel at U.S. Soccer’s new National Training Center before the team left for the World Cup. “Sometimes you get accustomed to doing things one way, and one of the unique things working with the Olympics or the World Cup and having the ability to do international travel is you get exposed to different concepts, you meet different people, and that’s how you get new ideas.
“Harris is always finding new ideas and not only using them himself, but sharing them with other people. And that’s how we all get better.”
While players love being around Patel, seeing him often means something has gone wrong, whether it’s a minor knock or a more serious injury. It helps that he’s one of the friendliest faces around the team.
“I don’t know anybody who ever met Harris and didn’t love him,” Courson said. “Sports medicine is tough because most everybody who comes into the training room comes there because they have a problem. You have a responsibility to take care of them and help them with what they’re dealing with.
“And to have somebody who is always positive, who cares about you not just as an athlete but as a person, I think that’s one of the most engaging qualities.”
