2007 Football Roster
Roster
Eric Butler
- Position:
- TE
- Height:
- 6-3
- Weight:
- 255
- Class:
- Senior
- 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.
![Jacksonville Jaguars punter Logan Cooke (9) punts during the second quarter of an NFL football matchup at EverBank Stadium, Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025, in Jacksonville, Fla. The Jaguars defeated the Jets 48-20. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union]](https://images.sidearmdev.com/resize?url=https%3A%2F%2Fdxbhsrqyrr690.cloudfront.net%2Fsidearm.nextgen.sites%2Fmsstate.sidearmsports.com%2Fimages%2F2026%2F1%2F1%2FUSATSI_27828199.jpg&height=340&type=webp)
