Hall of Fame
Butcher, a native of Detroit and graduate of Dearborn St. Alphonsus HS, started and lettered as linebacker in football the 1982, 1983, 1984, and 1985 seasons, and then went on to enjoy what is the longest National Football League career ever played by a Tartar. Currently a member of the Oakland Raiders, 1997 will be Butcher's 12th season in the NFL. During his career at WSU, Butcher set six career and single-season tackle records, two which still stand today. His first season record came in his junior year, 1984, when he recorded 86 assisted tackles. In his senior season Butcher had 93 solo and 147 total tackles that established new team season records. His career records were for 461 total tackles, 231 solo tackles, and 230 assisted tackles. Butcher's season and career totals for assisted tackles are still Wayne records. Butcher led his sophomore, junior and senior teams in total tackles, and was recognized by the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) with all-conference recognition upon conclusion of each season. In 1983 he was named to the All-GLIAC Honorable Mention Team, and in 1984 and 1985 was selected to the All-GLIAC First Team. During his junior year Butcher was twice named the GLIAC Defensive Player-of-the-Week. He served as the Tartars' team co-captain in 1985 and was named its MVP. After finishing his Tartar career in 1985, Butcher spent the off-season working out in preparation for the 1986 NFL camps. Though several clubs expressed interest, he was not drafted, and heading into July, was not signed by a club. That changed when Butcher's father, Dr. Paul Butcher, D.D.S., wrote to then-Detroit Lions Head Coach Darryl Rogers and told him he'd be missing out on a sure thing if he didn't sign his son. Rogers did, Butcher made the squad, and he emerged as a top special teams player for the next three seasons for Detroit. After the 1986 season Butcher was cited by broadcaster John Madden, who picked him as the special teams player for his annual All-Madden Team. In 1987 and 1988 Butcher was an alternate special teams selection to the NFL Pro Bowl. In January 1990 the Los Angeles Rams Signed Butcher for the playoffs, and he played two more seasons for the Rams, 1991-92. Butcher played the 1993-94 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts, then he was selected in the expansion draft by the Carolina Panthers, where he played in 1995, and last season he played for the Raiders. He has appeared in 134 games in his NFL career through last season. Butcher began his Wayne State career much as he did his professional career, as a free agent. He was not recruited from Dearborn St. Alphonsus High School, where he was an All-City and All-League football and basketball player his senior year. Instead, he walked on to the Tartar program, and in the process became one of their greatest defensive standouts ever. He graduated from Wayne State in 1987 with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering. Butcher and his wife, Jacqueline, reside in Laguna Niguel, Calif., with their son, Paul. The Butchers own a children retail store, Baby Unique, in San Juan Capistrano, Calif.
