Nineteen, the number on his back
Voted captain of the high school football team
Took us all the way to state
Got a scholarship to play down in Tennessee

He could catch, he could throw, he could run
He could go like you've never seen
Nineteen but on the day those twin towers came down
His whole world turned around

He told 'em all I can't play ball
There's a war on now
He marched right in with a few good men
And joined the marines at nineteen

He's the boy next door
He might have carried your bags at the grocery store
He's somebody's son in a hole with a gun in a foreign land
Tryin' to hold on to his American dream at nineteen

There's a sniper out there in the dark somewhere and a solider's down
We need someone who can duck and run and get him out some how
Want one good man, raise his hand and take one for the team
Well, how 'bout you nineteen?

He's the boy next door
He might've carried your bags at the grocery store
Now he's somebody's son in a hole with a gun in a foreign land
Tryin' to hold on to his American dream, nineteen, nineteen

They brought him home today with a big parade
Down on main street
He got a purple heart and a silver star
A solider gave a speech

Said he could catch, he could throw
He could run, he's the one that rescued me
Could have played for Tennessee
He was nineteen, he was only nineteen