By Gio DiFazio

Hinds Community College, Popeye’s Chicken, and Super Bowl 49 Champion. What could these three things possibly have in common? You would never guess the answer is Malcolm Butler. Let me refresh your memory. It is Super Bowl 49 with the Seattle Seahawks driving down the field inside the 2 minute mark. Ricardo Lockette makes a circus catch over a defensive back that had seen minimal minutes named Malcolm Butler. On the next play, the bruising 220 LB. Marshawn Lynch barreled down to the one yard line. Time was ticking and I could see around me, the perplexed look on every Pats, as Bill Belichick stood on the sideline, refusing to call the timeout.

On the following play, Russell Wilson and threw a slant ball to Lockette, who beat Butler previously. This time, Butler jumped the pick route and sent Lockette ass over tea kettle.

Next thing I know the ball is in Malcolm Butler’s hands, and this self-admitted, spoiled Patriots fan was going nuts. I won’t bore you with the details, but everything about Butler’s awareness on that play is the reason that the Patriots were crowned champions. Butler was on the rock bottom after the Ricardo Lockette reception. Lockette made a freakish catch over Butler down the right sideline, combating the tight coverage that Butler had on the receiver. Malcolm Butler was able to forget about his mistake and bounce back, 2 plays later, being crowned a hero. This defensive series seems to be a microcosm of Butler’s life to an outsider like me.

Butler was born in Vicksburg, MI. Upon entering high school he joined the high school football team his freshman year. After that, Butler did not fall in love with the game until two years later. His senior year he quickly caught the eye of college scouts and coaches, but had no choice but to settle for an athletic scholarship offered to him by Hinds Community College. Butler was forced to make this choice due to his grades. After playing for only five games of the season, he was dismissed from school (for unspecified reasons) and found a part time job at Popeye’s chicken.

He soon started taking summer classes at Alcorn State, and was back on the Gridiron at Hinds Community College in no time. Quickly bigger schools caught notice of Butler’s lightning fast ability to break on the football.

For the 2012 and 2013 seasons, the defensive back with the quiet demeanor shined on the division two stage. He was named a D-II All-American by Beyond Sports Network and was able to capture the attention of pro scouts.

For those who are not familiar with the NFL and it’s draft, very rarely is a player drafted that is not a D-I player. Only a fraction of D-I players make it to begin with, let alone D-II and below. He went undrafted, but was hastily signed by the New England Patriots after the draft. The rest is literally history, and I’ll be rehashing my memory of that interception until the day I die.

Butler quickly grew into one of the best defensive backs in the league. Darrelle Revis and Brandon Browner couldn’t agree to restructure their contracts, so Butler quickly became the #1 man in New England. Darrelle Revis left a massive void in the secondary after leaving that Butler was able to fill with ease.

Seven Patriots were invited to the Pro Bowl and Butler was among them. Pretty dam good for a kid from D-II West Alabama. If he were to retire today, he would still be sealed inside Patriots immortality.