{"id":5107,"date":"2016-02-27T06:00:22","date_gmt":"2016-02-27T11:00:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/?p=5107"},"modified":"2016-02-27T04:15:57","modified_gmt":"2016-02-27T09:15:57","slug":"small-school-stud-lb-larry-butler-iii-is-a-perfect-patriot-fit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/2016\/02\/27\/small-school-stud-lb-larry-butler-iii-is-a-perfect-patriot-fit\/","title":{"rendered":"Larry Butler III Interview, Small School Stud LB, Perfect Patriot Fit"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The small Christian Liberal Arts school of Southern Nazarene is 1674 miles away from Foxboro in Bethany, Oklahoma but the middle linebacker for the Crimson Storm plays football like he\u2019s already been residing at One Patriots Place.<\/p>\n<p>Larry Butler III is a name many of you have never heard of since he played for a small Division 2 school and one whose team was just 1-10 in 2015. But in looking for a guy who can play middle or inside linebacker for the Patriots, he\u2019s an impressive young man who is worth a look.<\/p>\n<p>Butler agreed to sit down to talk for an interview with us at PatsFans.com while he\u2019s preparing to hopefully hear his name called in the 2016 NFL Draft. He\u2019s been working out at Champion Fitness and Nutrition in Atlanta, getting ready for his Pro Day, since he was snubbed without an invite to the NFL Combine. But don\u2019t let that sway you, there are plenty of players on the 53-man roster who also have been snubbed\u2026 more to that in a bit.<\/p>\n<p>Butler\u2019s final season was a tough one both as a team and personally. He missed two games with an ankle injury and parts of a couple of others. But still managed 75 tackles, a sack and 2 interceptions in 2015. He was named to the All GAC team. In 2014 he had 93 total tackles, including 9.5 tackles for loss (TFL), 2.5 sacks and 3 forced fumbles.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/XPsTXVd0CpA\" width=\"450\" height=\"250\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Butler grew up in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and had about 20 offers to go Division 1, including 5 from the SEC. But his grades weren\u2019t there so he entered Junior College. ESPN had him ranked the #1 JUCO linebacker and he was set to enter Tennessee before a snafu emerged. He took one class too many in Junior college, therefore, would only have one year of eligibility remaining for Division 1 and the Vols.<\/p>\n<p>So Butler opted for the small school of Southern Nazarene University outside of Oklahoma City. So why there at Southern Nazarene? That was the first logical question to ask. \u201c<em>I was committed to Tennessee, but due to a technicality, that didn\u2019t happen, but what drew me here <\/em>(Southern Nazarene)<em> was the Christian environment, the home feeling of the entire university and I felt like that is what I needed in my life. The academic prestige of the university was definitely a factor as well.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u201c<em>Tennessee\u2019s loss was Southern Nazarene\u2019s gain<\/em>,\u201d said his defensive coordinator and interim head coach in 2015 Craig Hubbard. \u201c<em>We felt truly fortunate to get Larry here and he was a big, big part of our program.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u201c<em>We mixed things up when I was the DC<\/em>,\u201d Hubbard said. \u201c<em>We played 4-3, 3-4, Larry fit in well, he\u2019s a very physical, instinctive player. He played off blocks well and he\u2019s a great tackler.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>We asked Butler who is working out in Atlanta, is there a specific area that you\u2019re looking to improve on?<\/p>\n<p>\u201c<em>Not in particular, I feel like you can always get better, but in refining technique, getting quicker, stronger and faster, some mental acumen\u2026 studying the mental side of football, coverages and certain things I\u2019ll have to face at the next level.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>A downhill, instinctive linebacker, the 6\u20191, 248-pound Butler is a thumper in the middle of the field, runs a 4.67 in the 40-yard dash but is a three-down player. He was a member on all four core special teams units as well so he isn\u2019t worried about having to earn his way onto the field via special teams either.<\/p>\n<p>He has a tremendous work ethic and is a true student of the game. One of his strong suits is not only knowing his responsibilities but those of the other members of the defense as well.<\/p>\n<p><em>\u201cI take pride in knowing everything that\u2019s taking place on the football field, as the middle linebacker, the quarterback of the defense, we HAVE to know where the D-Linemen are lining up, what the backs must do on the back end,\u201d<\/em> he said.<\/p>\n<p><em>\u201cIf I don\u2019t do that I don\u2019t feel like I\u2019m doing my job.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Hubbard chuckled when we talked about Butler\u2019s work ethic, \u201c<em>Whenever I was looking for Larry, we\u2019d always find him in the film room. There were times, I\u2019d be wanting to lock up shop for the night, no one is left in the building\u2026 and he\u2019s in there wanting to watch more film, break down tendencies\u2026he\u2019d always want to meet, and watch film. Larry\u2019s a real go-getter when it came to getting himself prepared for the game and knowing the opponent.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>\u201cHe was a heckuva player for us, and if somebody gives Larry a shot, I think he can absolutely be playing in the NFL next year.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Is there a better fit for Butler in a 3-4 defense or the 4-3 that the Patriots use in their base? <em>\u201cI feel like I\u2019m versatile enough to fit in any scheme, I do like the 3-4 defense with more linebackers on the field, that was something that I got accustomed to in high school. We played a 4-3 here so it wouldn\u2019t make a difference. I feel like I fit in either.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Is there an NFL player who\u2019s game you feel like you are similar to? <em>\u201cI feel like I am kinda unique<\/em>,\u201d Butler said. \u201c<em>But a few scouts compared me to a Denzel Perryman.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>We asked him an NFL Combine-type question, \u2018if I\u2019m Bill Belichick why would we pick you up as a member of the Patriots?\u2019<\/p>\n<p><em>\u201cI\u2019d look him right in the eye and say, that would be one of the best decisions you ever made.\u201d<\/em> Coincidentally, those were nearly the exact words that Tom Brady told Robert Kraft after the 2000 draft.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018<em>I\u2019m a hungry individual that is looking for a chance, I think I can help the team win, there will never be any off-field issues with me. I\u2019ll be the first one in the film room, weight room and the last one out. I want to achieve greatness and am willing to do whatever it takes to do that.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>With the retirement of Jerod Mayo, the Patriots can use some depth at the linebacker position behind Jamie Collins and Dont&#8217;a Hightower, especially inside. Jonathan Freeny and Darius Fleming are primarily outside linebackers. Jon Bostic is on the roster but didn\u2019t play much on defense last season, mainly on special teams.<\/p>\n<p>Butler is a perfect fit for the Belichick mold, a guy that eats, sleeps and lives for football. He can fulfill a role and need for the team and with a late round draft pick or perhaps signing him as an UDFA, he could be the next diamond in the rough for the Patriots.<\/p>\n<p>As for him not being invited to the Combine, some other Patriots players who also weren\u2019t invited include Julian Edelman, Shaq Mason, Sebastian Vollmer, Nate Ebner, Duron Harmon, Tavon Wilson, Malcolm Butler and Darryl Roberts.<\/p>\n<p>Butler possesses the same trait as all of them, a deep desire to improve and the work ethic to see it through. All he\u2019s looking for is a chance. Two seasons ago the Patriots had a Butler from a small Division 2 school come out of nowhere to play a big role for the team when they needed it the most. Perhaps it is time for another Butler from a small Division 2 school to do it again.<\/p>\n<p><em>Follow me on Twitter\u00a0<\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/SteveB7SFG\"><em>@SteveB7SFG<\/em><\/a><em>\u00a0or email me at\u00a0<\/em><a href=\"http:\/\/patspub.patsfans.com\/stevebpatsfans@gmail.com\"><em>stevebpatsfans@gmail.com<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<p><em>Listen to our\u00a0<\/em><a href=\"http:\/\/www.blogtalkradio.com\/patriotsfourthandtwo\"><em>Patriots 4<sup>th<\/sup>\u00a0and 2<\/em><\/a><em>\u00a0podcast on blog talk radio as the writers Russ Goldman, Derek Havens and I from\u00a0<\/em><a href=\"http:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/\"><em>PatsFans.com<\/em><\/a><em>\u00a0discuss the latest Patriots news Wednesdays at 12 noon.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A downhill, instinctive linebacker, the 6\u20191, 248-pound Butler is a thumper in the middle of the field, runs a 4.67 in the 40-yard dash but is a three-down player. He was a member on all four core special teams units as well so he isn\u2019t worried about having to earn his way onto the field via special teams either.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":5108,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[890,11,10],"tags":[886,833,892,799,48,34,567,154,288,153,330,894,15,44,70,8,850,13],"class_list":["post-5107","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-patriots-2016-nfl-draft","category-patriots-commentary","category-patriots-news","tag-2016-nfl-combine","tag-2016-nfl-draft","tag-2016-patriots-draft","tag-2016-patriots-roster","tag-53-man-roster-projection","tag-bill-belichick","tag-darius-fleming","tag-donta-hightower","tag-jamie-collins","tag-jerod-mayo","tag-jon-bostic","tag-jonathan-freeny","tag-malcolm-butler","tag-new-england-patriots","tag-nfl","tag-patriots","tag-patriots-linebackers","tag-tom-brady"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.4 (Yoast SEO v27.4) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Larry Butler III Interview, Small School Stud LB, Perfect Patriot Fit<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A downhill, instinctive linebacker, the 6\u20191, 248-pound Butler is a thumper in the middle of the field, runs a 4.67 in the 40-yard dash but is a three-down player. 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