'13 DC ATH Devin Butler (Notre Dame Signed LOI)

[RDU Irish]

Hilarious! Choked on my coffee.

 

[NDhoosier]

That is pretty funny, but I am sure someone will try to put a negative spin to it or something.

"OMG, he said ***! Notre Dame recruits punks."

He does kind of look like one of them though.

 

[BeauBenken]

Watching the vine, I thought he did look a bit like Chris Rock, but holy smokes now that I looked at one of his photos, he totally has the Eddie Murphy smile...

v

 

[PANDFAN]

did you put a banana in my tailpipe? ha ha ha #axelfoleyvoice

 

[PANDFAN]

Butler Excited For Bright Lights
THURSDAY, 13 JUNE 2013 07:26 CHRISTIAN MCCOLLUM

Devin Butler can’t wait to play on the big stage, under the lights at Notre Dame Stadium.

“It’s going to be like a dream come true,” the incoming Irish cornerback from Washington, D.C., said.

“As a young kid, that’s what you dream about, especially in my neighborhood. We would wait until the street lights come on and play like we’re playing in the stadium.”

He won’t have to wait much longer as he’ll officially become a member of the Irish when he reports to camp next week.

“I’m super excited,” said Butler. “I can’t wait. It’s going to be epic.

“I’m most excited to just start the next chapter of my life after being able to accomplish what I wanted to accomplish in high school. Now, I’m looking forward to setting new goals and achieving those goals in college.”

The 6-foot-1, 183-pounder is excited to get to South Bend, but has mixed emotions about leaving.

“It’s going to be bittersweet,” Butler said as he packed up for college. “I’m just like, ‘Wow, I literally have to pack all of my clothes.’

“My family and friends have been here my whole life. It’s going to be tough saying good-bye, but everybody knows that it’s for a good reason.”

But he’ll arrive at Notre Dame with one clear goal.

“To just make an impact somehow, someway,” he said. “No matter what way it is, I want to at least make my presence felt.

“Whether it’s on special teams or in the nickel if I become the third corner or the dime. Wherever the coaches put me on the field, I want to go out there and give it my all.”

Butler believes he needs to prove himself on and off the field.

“I just need to show them that mentally, I’m not too far behind,” he said. “I want to show them that I’m mature enough off the field and I’ll be in my playbook enough to know the plays and just to gain their trust really. Then in practice, I’ll just have to make plays.”

He’s already been told by the five early enrollees in his class that the classroom work is difficult.

“They said the work is going to be hard,” Butler said. “They said it’s going to be brutal. But they said that everybody is behind you 100 percent and to never be afraid to ask for help.

“I guess you have to work on your time management a lot. You have to be able to say, ‘Alright, I’m going to take this hour out of my day, put my phone away, turn the games off and just study.’”

 

[RuntheBall]

Devin sounds likes an all-around great kid. Glad he is wearing Blue and Gold.

Not sure if the story has been shared, but I don't remember hearing this... but my memory does seem to be lacking...

Devin Butler finds inspiration in taking care of his brother

Notre Dame football recruit Devin Butler may be five years younger than his brother, Darius, but he doesn’t act like it.

As a freshman at Howard University in October 2008, Darius was walking in the wrong place at the wrong time. WUSA9 reported that he was shot five times while returning home from a party late at night. He survived the shooting but was left paralyzed after three bullets entered his back.

When Darius returned home following a three-month hospital stay, Devin, who was in middle school at the time, turned into part-time caregiver. Simply put, little brother became big brother.

Devin assisted his brother with getting dressed, washing his face and brushing his teeth. He also served him meals, helped him get in and out of the car and wheeled him around to doctor appointments, restaurants, the mall, the movie theater and sometimes the local rec center, where the two would shoot basketball.

“I could always call Devin,” Darius said. “Eventually I started calling him first and my parents second.”

Devin said he’d quickly finish homework after school so he could spend time with his brother. He recalled an instance when the two were playing video games. Usually Darius asked for help when he needed to move from his bed to a chair, but one time he attempted on his own. He slipped, and the chair rolled back. Fortunately, Devin was able to catch him.

“I think it meant more to him than it did to me," Devin said. "It showed a sign of trust and that I was there for him."

Helping Darius was never a burden, and Devin said assuming a part-time caregiver role quickly transformed his conscious.

“It really opened my eyes to the needs that other people have who are not as healthy as I am,” Butler said.

Had it not been for Darius, “I wouldn’t have been so in tune to others’ suffering,” Butler said.

He took to offering a hand in the community by volunteering at The Father McKenna Center, which assists the poor and homeless in Washington, D.C. For the past three years, he has helped serve meals and spends time talking to residents living in the center.

His brother’s tragedy shaped Butler in others ways, too, along with his friends, who also knew Darius. Butler said they’ve all become more conscious of their surroundings.

“When they see a tragedy like that, it really opens their eyes,” Butler said. “It’s affected a lot of my decisions, like whether I should stay outside and hang with friends or come inside and do homework.”

Darius attended all but one of Butler’s football games. Whenever Butler would score a touchdown or make a big play, he’d immediately find his brother to give him a high five.

“All the kids had a chance to see that special relationship,” said coach Aaron Brady. “Some of our kids who were less mature or not as trustworthy, once they saw Devin’s relationship with his brother, I think it definitely changed them. The biggest thing they learned from being around Darius was that decisions you make can impact the rest of your life, your family — everything.”

Butler said after his brother’s shooting, he began to take football more seriously. The sport served as incentive to stay out of trouble, focus on school and on his future. When Butler committed to Notre Dame last April, he said his brother’s incident had partly swayed his decision because his priorities shifted at a young age.

“Before, I thought it was important to be out with friends and have fun all the time. Afterwards, I saw that family and faith are most important,” Butler said.

Reason that attracted him to Notre Dame’s program and also because of “the accountable the coaches require out of their players.”

Butler uses his learned awareness to positively impact youth. He tutors elementary school kids at Capital City Public Charter School in D.C. While his primary role includes teaching how to read, he said he feels a responsibility to encourage and be a role model.

And the advice he shares is to never take anything for granted and to always be thankful and respectful.

“Any minute your whole life can change,” Butler said. “Be happy and enjoy life for what it is because it can be fleeting.”

 

[ulukinatme]

Awesome kid, good role model. I think I remember reading this awhile back or similar story, thanks for posting this though.

 

[Redbar]

I think this 2013 class is incredibly special. The staff and the young men came together and bonded around the type of principles that will make "Our Lady" very proud.

 

[Bogtrotter07]

WOW!

 

[ShawneeIrish]

Thats amazing! Seems like a great kid. Only thing that is a shame is he will be far from his brother while here at ND, but with ND degree should at least be able to help his family in the years to come.

 

[STLDomer]

So per Rivals a teammate of Butler Richie Petitbon - Yahoo! Sports just camped at Bama and got an offer. His great uncle also won a natty at ND. He camped at ND also but said he didn't get much attention from the coaches, he also added this:

"With Devin there you would think a Notre Dame recruiter would acknowledge I came there."

Sounds like the staff may have messed up a little here

 

[CanadalovesND]

So per Rivals a teammate of Butler Richie Petitbon - Yahoo! Sports just camped at Bama and got an offer. His great uncle also won a natty at ND. He camped at ND also but said he didn't get much attention from the coaches, he also added this:

"With Devin there you would think a Notre Dame recruiter would acknowledge I came there."

Sounds like the staff may have messed up a little here

Or maybe the staff has their 2015 OL targets in mind and Petitbon is lower on the board

 

[STLDomer]

Or maybe the staff has their 2015 OL targets in mind and Petitbon is lower on the board

You don't agree that u would expect a guy with multiple ND ties could have got at least a acknowledgment from the staff?

 

[ThePiombino]

What's the point of camp then?

You don't agree that u would expect a guy with multiple ND ties could have got at least a acknowledgment from the staff?

How do we know they didn't, but it just want what he hoped/expected?

 

[GoIrish41]

What's the point of camp then?

You don't agree that u would expect a guy with multiple ND ties could have got at least a acknowledgment from the staff?

hiking, fishing, s'mores?

 

[STLDomer]

How do we know they didn't, but it just want what he hoped/expected?

Definitely possible it just said "he really didn't get any feedback from the Irish coaches."

 

[Rocket 94]

Or with a top 5 OT committed for 2015 in Tillery along with a near lock in Tristen Hoge the staff is only recruiting one more OL for the cycle. I would assume that won't be Petitbon. Don't really like it either when potential recruits whine to a reporter about not getting "noticed". That screams red flag to me.

 

[GoIrish41]

Or with a top 5 OT committed for 2015 in Tillery along with a near lock in Tristen Hoge the staff is only recruiting one more OL for the cycle. I would assume that won't be Petitbon. Don't really like it either when potential recruits whine to a reporter about not getting "noticed". That screams red flag to me.

why do you think they will only take 3 OL for the cycle?

 

[NDWorld247]

why do you think they will only take 3 OL for the cycle?

Because we don't oversign and 3 is all we need in the '15 cycle. And with that, cue Whiskey and the posting of the eligibility depth chart.

 

[Old Man Mike]

The young man may have come up to South Bend with fantasy stars in his mind and was disappointed in a less than fantasy response from the staff. We probably can't know the "shades of gray" without being present for whatever the interactions were.

 

[IrishLax]

So per Rivals a teammate of Butler Richie Petitbon - Yahoo! Sports just camped at Bama and got an offer. His great uncle also won a natty at ND. He camped at ND also but said he didn't get much attention from the coaches, he also added this:

"With Devin there you would think a Notre Dame recruiter would acknowledge I came there."

Sounds like the staff may have messed up a little here

This is the fundamental problem with this stupid push towards early recruiting. Unless you got the Alabama/USC route of offering all kinds of non-commitable early scholarships to prospects you like 8th grade and older... or you're a MAC level school where there is no downside to an early "gambling" offer... I don't know what you do. How can you even evaluate, much less offer, kids at power positions who are 15/16 and haven't even played their junior year of football?

There are sparse few prospects who are such "sure things" that you can offer. And most of those are at skill positions. ND is taking probably a maximum of 3 OL (unless there is attrition or something... and honestly with 2 years between now and when these kids step on campus that is very possible) in 2015 and we already have Tillery and are likely to land Hoge. That leaves room for 1 guy. So apologies to Fruhmorgen that he can't take our staff being straight shooters... and also I'm not going to lose sleep over our staff not paying enough attention to this completely unrated player. I'm sure if he showed out then he would've gotten attention.

The obvious alternative is having staff lead kids on when you really don't know what you think about them yet... you get a recruiting coordinator or whomever to show lots of interest and keep the door open in case you like them down the road. I don't know how I feel about this personally... I see pros and cons.

The other issue (and we're getting way off topic now from Butler so maybe I should move it to another thread) but with how QBs specifically tend to commit very early this is a very dangerous trend. Look at what happened to us this year... thank God we were able to get in late with Kizer. I just do no understand the arms race towards early recruiting... you have this in a lot of other sports, but football has always lagged because there is such a physical aspect to it. In lacrosse it is an epidemic with "blue chip" players often committing as freshman. What ends up happening is that late bloomers fall through the cracks then and power programs like Johns Hopkins, Virginia, etc. suffer as these "blue chip" players end up being worse when they actually get on campus than the guys who really stepped their game up as juniors or sophomores. One of the ways ND broke into being a power is that we recruited unheralded multi-sport athletes who weren't the most polished lacrosse players knowing they had superior athleticism and upside. I wonder if this early recruiting trend will start to undermine traditional powers... or maybe SEC schools that will drop a verbal at any time for any reason they want will start to really separate themselves from the pack even more than they currently are. Why not grab 30 2015 verbals and then weed out the kids that don't develop later?

 

[GoldenIsThyFame]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Got my number changed to 12 numero_docé</p>— Devin Butler (@DevinButler_7) <a href="https://twitter.com/DevinButler_7/statuses/369525848082100225">August 19, 2013</a></blockquote>
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[GBdomer]

Good for some reason I hate every number in the 30's and 40's

 

[Emcee77]

Good for some reason I hate every number in the 30's and 40's

Ha I was thinking the same thing. Exception for fullbacks ... they only look right to me with numbers in that range.

I am kinda curious about why he's making the change now. Was there some reason he couldn't have 12 originally? Were they wondering originally if he was going to play offense, maybe (12 is Hendrix)? I doubt it but it's all I can think of, unless he just changed his mind about the number he wanted.

 

[dublinirish]

presuming Butler will redshirt this year? Thought he actually might be one of the frosh who would make some noise in training camp

 

[Ironman8]

presuming Butler will redshirt this year? Thought he actually might be one of the frosh who would make some noise in training camp

Why are you presuming that? We need a ton of bodies on special teams, and he showed a knack for that during high school. It wouldn't surprise me to see him being one of the freshman who don't RS and play on all the special teams.

 

[dublinirish]

Why are you presuming that? We need a ton of bodies on special teams, and he showed a knack for that during high school. It wouldn't surprise me to see him being one of the freshman who don't RS and play on all the special teams.

just hadn't heard anything about him is all. Presuming there was no ST footage on any of the practice highlight videos? Interested to see what kind of personnel is on there (more 1's and 2's) now that BK is personally more involved with these units.

 

[Ironman8]

just hadn't heard anything about him is all. Presuming there was no ST footage on any of the practice highlight videos? Interested to see what kind of personnel is on there (more 1's and 2's) now that BK is personally more involved with these units.

ISD reported in their Intel today that both Cole Luke and Devin Butler have impressed the staff a lot. Luke is definitely ahead of Butler right now, but they really like Butler. I agree with you that he may well redshirt - to me it depends if Lo Wood, Josh Atkinson and Jalen Brown embrace a ST role and perform well. If they do, he has the luxury to preserve a year while knowing that in a normal year with less depth he would absolutely see the field.

 

[ulukinatme]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Singing that first alma mater with the student section and all of <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23NDnation&src=hash">#NDnation</a> was the best feeling ever,… <a href="http://t.co/ZhnDpMkCmN">http://t.co/ZhnDpMkCmN</a></p>— Devin Butler (@DevinButler_12) <a href="https://twitter.com/DevinButler_12/statuses/374162366688423936">September 1, 2013</a></blockquote>
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[tko]

love the youth on this team. just grow up real fast ahead of Michigan!