In a move that seems long overdue, the NCAA has launched an investigation into the activities of Bryce Brown’s handler, Brian Butler. Butler has been credited with turning the recruiting process for the nation’s #1 ranked recruit into a circus.
His activities and the publicity that Brown’s recruitment has received has raised a red flag with the NCAA according to a published report in the Kansas City Star. The big warning was when Butler decided to charge interested fans and other parties for the latest information regarding Brown’s recruitment on his website, potentialplayers.com. Brown’s brother, Arthur signed with University of Miami in 2008 and Bryce was an early commit to the Canes. However, Brown’s commtiment started to wane as the signing day approached and Brian Butler’s name became more prominent in Brown’s recruitment.
At one point, Butler promoted the idea that Brown was considering skipping college and would take an offer to play in the Canadian Football League (CFL). When criticized, Butler backed off of those reports and has also nixed the ideas of having people pay for recruiting information on Bryce Brown. With the NCAA’s eyes peering down on Butler, he will have to mine his P’s and Q’s. Many are of the belief that Butler is using Brown as a tool for economic gain and that Brown’s final destination will depend greatly on what a school is willing to “offer” both Brown and Butler for his services. This will certainly bring attention to Brown’s school of choice and has already brought the watchful eyes of the NCAA to the activities of the Brown-Butler team.
Some former Butler “clients” have said they broke ties with Butler after he made some questionable suggestions like skipping practices and paying Butler to work out with him. A number of colleges backed off the recruitment of Brown because they had to deal with Butler.
According to the published report, the department involved in the investigation for the NCAA is in charge of examining the amateur status of athletes once they enter college and not necessarily recruiting violations. They want to know if Butler did anything to jeopardize the amateur status of his clients. The soap opera continues. I don’t expect much to come of the NCAA Investigation.
Chad Wilson is a college football recruiting expert and creator of the GridironStudsApp which allows high school football players to gain exposure to college football coaches and fans. Wilson is a former college football player for the University of Miami (92-94) and Long Beach St. (’90-’91) and played briefly for the Seattle Seahawks (’95). He is also a former youth and high school football coach for over 15 years most recently for 5-A State of Florida Champs American Heritage. He runs All Eyes DB Camp a defensive back training company located in South Florida IG: @alleyesdbcamp. Wilson’s oldest son Quincy plays in the NFL for the New York Giants and his younger son plays cornerback for the Arizona Cardinals.