2006 Football Roster
Roster
Eric Butler
- Position:
- TE
- Height:
- 6-3
- Weight:
- 251
- Class:
- Junior
- Hometown:
- Moss Point, MS
- High School/Previous School:
- Moss Point
CAREER:
Opened his Mississippi State football career with a bang during his redshirt freshman campaign and has continued to be a big-play threat in the passing game ever since . . . Has played in 32 games, earning 23 starting calls at tight end in his first three seasons . . . Has caught 42 passes for 564 yards, a 13.4-yard average, and eight touchdowns . . . His eight TD catches ties for 11th on the school’s career list in that category . . . In just his first season, he became the school’s single-season touchdown receptions leader for a tight end, surpassing Treddis Anderson, who had three in 1990 . . . In his second, he became the school’s career touchdown leader for that position, passing Anderson who had five from 1989-91 . . . Came to the Bulldogs following a standout two-sport high school career on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
2006:
Began his junior season in the same role he held throughout his sophomore campaign . . . Started at tight end from the outset of the year . . . Played in 11 games with six starting calls at the position . . . Saw action in all but the Tulane game in Week 3 . . . Earned starts against South Carolina and Auburn to open the season, in back-to-back games against Jacksonville State and Georgia at midseason, in Week 10 vs. Alabama and in the season finale at Ole Miss . . . Had 13 receptions for 210 yards, a 16.1-yard average, and one touchdown . . . Caught one pass for 20 yards in the season opener against South Carolina . . . Injured his toe against the Auburn in Week 2 and was forced to the sidelines the following week in preparation for State’s Week 3 Tulane game . . . Did not dress out against the Green Wave . . . Returned to the game field one week later in Birmingham . . . Had one reception for 19 yards against UAB . . . Added another catch (20 yards) in Week 6 vs. West Virginia . . . Hauled in a 17-yard touchdown pass in the Bulldogs’ Week 7 win over Jacksonville State, his eighth career TD catch . . . That score gave MSU a 28-3 lead midway through the third quarter . . . Made two catches for 44 yards at Georgia in Week 8 . . . Saw very limited work one week later against Kentucky after suffering an ankle sprain at Georgia . . . After making six catches during the season’s first nine weeks, he had seven grabs for 90 yards in the campaign’s final three weeks . . . Gained a more active role in Week 10 at Alabama . . . Caught two passes for 30 yards in the win over the Crimson Tide . . . Added another reception (11 yards) against Arkansas in Week 11 . . . Matched his career high (4 vs. Arkansas ’04; vs. Georgia ’05) with a season-best four catches for 49 yards in the season finale at Ole Miss . . . Held out of all contact work during the spring while rehabbing an off-season shoulder surgery . . . Was full-speed by the time two-a-days began in August.
2005:
Played in all 11 games during his sophomore season, starting at tight end eight times . . . Only failed to make the opening call when the team opted to open in multiple wide receiver sets . . . Caught 14 passes for 188 yards, a 13.4-yard average, and three touchdowns . . . Hauled in 10 of those passes for 125 yards and all three scores in the season’s first four weeks . . . Opened his sophomore season the way he closed his initial campaign for the Bulldogs . . . Recorded three catches for 29 yards, one of which was an 8-yard touchdown reception, against Murray State . . . His TD catch of an Omarr Conner pass came midway through the third quarter and handed the Bulldogs a 31-6 lead at the time . . . It was his fifth career touchdown reception, tying the MSU record for career TDs by a tight end (5, Treddis Anderson, 1989-91) . . . Rebounded from an ankle sprain incurred during practice leading up to State’s Week 2 SEC opener at Auburn to make two catches for 25 yards against the Tigers . . . Broke the career touchdown receiving record for tight ends in Week 3 win over Tulane . . . His sixth career TD catch was an 18-yard reception from Omarr Conner midway through the third quarter that handed the Bulldogs a 14-0 lead at the time . . . It was his only catch of the night . . . Tied for the team lead with four catches for a team-best 53 yards and a touchdown in State’s Week 4 contest with Georgia . . . His 4-yard TD catch from Omarr Conner came midway through the fourth period and closed out the game’s scoring . . . Made his first catch in four weeks at Kentucky in Week 8, a 27-yard aerial . . . Had two catches for 20 yards two weeks later at Arkansas . . . Concluded his sophomore season with a 16-yard reception during State’s campaign-closing 35-14 victory over Ole Miss . . . Bothered by minor maladies throughout spring, his work during full-speed scrimmages was limited . . . Entered August two-a-day work second on the depth chart at the tight end position.
2004:
Named to the Southeastern Conference All-Freshman and The Sporting News 2004 Freshman All-SEC teams . . . Played in all but one game (10 of 11) during his redshirt freshman campaign, missing time only due to injury . . . Started nine times . . .Finished third on the club with 15 receptions for 166 yards, an 11.1-yard average, and a team-best four touchdowns . . . His scoring receptions were a single-season high for a tight end . . . Rebounded from injury maladies to earn the starting nod at the tight end position as just a redshirt freshman . . . Opened his Mississippi State career with a standout performance in the team’s season-opening win over Tulane . . . Tied for the team lead with two catches for a club-best 38 yards and a touchdown against the Green Wave . . . His 11-yard TD reception from Omarr Conner came midway through the third quarter and gave the Bulldogs a 14-0 lead at the time . . . It was his first career touchdown reception . . . Again tied for the team lead in receiving one week later vs. Auburn, catching three passes for 23 yards against the Tigers . . . Made his third career start in Week 3 work against Maine . . . Hauled in three passes for 32 yards and a touchdown against the Black Bears . . . His 18-yard TD catch of an Omarr Conner pass gave MSU a 7-0 first quarter lead in the game . . . Limited by a bruised foot, he was held to a 25-yard pass reception at LSU in Week 4 . . . Did not start when the team opted to open in a multiple wide receiver set and was held without a reception at Vanderbilt one week later . . . Had one catch, an 8-yard scoring reception, against UAB in Week 6 . . . His catch of a Kyle York toss with 4:40 left in the second quarter tied the game at 10 . . .That TD catch was his third of the season . . . He tied the single-season MSU touchdown reception record with that score (Treddis Anderson, 1990) . . . Played that game with a persistent knee malady that continued to bother him through open week work . . . Also suffered an ankle sprain that eventually caused his inactivity during State’s Week 7 win over Florida, the only game he was to miss on the season . . . Despite being limited by that ankle injury, he returned to work one week later against Kentucky . . . Had a 21-yard pass reception in the 22-7 win over UK . . . Caught a career-best four passes for 19 yards and one score in the Bulldogs’ home-season ending game with Arkansas in Week 10 . . . His 2-yard TD reception from Omarr Conner early in the fourth period pulled State within the game’s final outcome (24-21) . . . It was his fourth scoring reception of the season, the most ever in a single season by a Bulldog tight end . . . Held without a catch for just the third time in games he played during the season (also Vanderbilt and Alabama) in the season-ending game vs. Ole Miss . . . Sat out all of MSU’s spring practice after undergoing off-season shoulder surgery . . . His rehabilitation process kept him out of all contact and drill work during the spring . . . Listed third on the depth chart at tight end as fall drills commenced.
2003:
Redshirted his true freshman season.
HIGH SCHOOL:
Ranked with the top 25 recruits in the state of Mississippi by the Jackson Clarion-Ledger newspaper . . . Caught 24 passes for 520 yards, a 21.7-yard average, and five touchdowns during a breakout senior season . . . Credited with running a 4.54 in the 40-yard dash by the Jackson Clarion-Ledger . . . Named to the Mississippi Association of Coaches all-region team at tight end . . . Also a standout baseball player at Moss Point . . . Solid student in the classroom on the prep level . . . Selected to play in the Mississippi-Alabama High School all-star game.
PERSONAL:
Born Michael Eric Butler, 9-13-84, in Pascagoula, Miss. . . . Son of Mr. John and Mrs. Shirley Butler . . . Majoring in teaching and coaching.
