Rather than forcing a self-given nickname, Patrick Kivlehan chose to Believe in a more powerful option.

Kivlehan will wear "Believe" on the back of his Cincinnati Reds jersey during MLB Players Weekend, a first-year initiative designed to allow players to express themselves.

The former Rutgers two-sport star is honoring his college football teammate Eric LeGrand, who has made "Believe" his calling card in his battle to overcome a paralyzing spinal cord injury.

"I was asking around to all my buddies because I don't have a self-proclaimed nickname," Kivlehan told NJ Advance Media from the Reds clubhouse on Wednesday afternoon.

"I'm actually still really close with (former Rutgers football players) David Rowe and Wayne Warren. I threw out to them, 'Do you guys have a nickname for me? What should I put on my jersey?' One of them was like, 'Why don't you just put 'Believe' for Eric?' I thought about it, and it's a really cool idea to bring his story back to light and have people share his story."

Kivlehan and LeGrand were teammates for three seasons -- playing together on special teams and defense on the field and going head-to-head in the FIFA soccer video game in across-the-hall dorms -- before LeGrand's fateful tackle in an October 2010 game against Army.

Rutgers immediately adopted "Believe" as its team motto.

"It goes back to college with everything that happened to him and the whole mindset it created with everyone," Kivlehan said. "There's nobody that has worked harder than him. The mindset that he has instilled in other people through his journey and his battle, when you see his story it puts life in perspective. You realize you can get through things, too, if you believe you can."

Kivlehan texted the idea to LeGrand for approval. The red-lettered alternate jerseys will be worn across MLB in games from Aug. 25-27 -- when the Reds host the Pittsburgh Pirates -- and are available for purchase.

"I didn't know the whole concept until I saw them today, but the jersey looks awesome and I've got to get one," LeGrand said. "I think it's really cool that he thought of me in his MLB season."

LeGrand has become the face of spinal cord injury research and awareness through his work with the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation. He has helped to raise nearly $1 million for the cause through annual events like A Walk to Believe, An Evening With Eric LeGrand and countless others.

Before the latest Walk in June, Kivlehan had a "Saturdays Are For Believing" shirt made to promote the cause.

"He's given me his platform with the MLB," LeGrand said of Kivlehan said. "Someone who may not know my story or someone who may not even be from this country that he is playing with may ask him, 'Why did you put that there?' He'll tell them a little about me and who I am. I'm sure he could've thought of a million nicknames over the years, but he wanted to pay it forward to me."

LeGrand remains steadfast in his belief that a cure for paralysis will be discovered soon and he will walk again in the future.

"He's doing more than probably people thought he would ever be able to do," Kivlehan said. "I've seen his show (Mission Possible) and all the things he's doing to motivate other people who have disabilities. It's inspirational."

Kivlehan's journey to the major-leagues began after his senior season in football, when he joined the Rutgers baseball team for the first time. He became the unlikely 2012 Big East Player of the Year and a fourth-round pick in the MLB First-Year Player Draft.

"It's crazy to think back to then and now, and the way this world works," LeGrand said. "Kivlehan is killing it in the big-leagues."

After making his major-league debut last summer with the San Diego Padres, Kivlehan made the Reds out of spring training as a non-roster invitee and won a roster spot. He is hitting .212 with seven home runs in 78 games mostly off the bench as a utility man and pinch hitter for the Reds.

"Maybe some people in Ohio will see (the jersey) and are curious what it is," Kivlehan said. "So they will look Eric up and follow his story and latch on to what kind of cool things he's doing in this world."

The other Rutgers' alum in MLB, Yankees third baseman Todd Frazier, will wear "ToddFather" on his jersey. It's a nickname he picked up while playing for the Reds and is part of the home run call that eccentric Yankees radio voice John Sterling uses when Frazier hits a blast.

Ryan Dunleavy may be reached at rdunleavy@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @rydunleavy. Find NJ.com Rutgers Football on Facebook.