This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Watching the video is jarring. It's harder still to imagine feeling it.
Devin Chappell hit Cory Butler-Byrd so hard, it jarred both the ball and his mouthpiece loose, sending them tumbling yards from the scene of the tackle. But after the slow motion-replay on the Oregon State defensive back's teeth-chattering strike, cameras cut to Utah's senior receiver, laughing and applauding Chappell for running him over like a train.
The 5-foot-9 Compton, Calif., native has been at the center of some of Utah's biggest plays this year, from his opening touchdown return at UCLA, to a 24-yard touchdown run against Oregon that left Ducks defenders grasping at air. But Butler-Byrd has also taken hard shots — and nearly always bounces back with a grin afterward.
"He's an L.A. city guy," quarterback Troy Williams said. "We don't let big hits faze us. That stuff happens ever since we were little. He's a tough kid."
Every one of Butler-Byrd's teammates says it takes more than a hard hit to wipe the smile off the wiry-built receiver and returner's face.
But it may be a reflection of how the 22-year-old feels since he took the hit this summer that nearly took out his chance to play: a criminal mischief charge kept him sidelined through mid-September.
His friend and mentor Cerone Woods said he hasn't been surprised to see Butler-Byrd play through hits that would break lesser men. He thinks back to July, when he got a call from the receiver and heard him say in a defeated voice: "Man, I messed up."
Playing angry
Butler-Byrd had an unstable childhood, moving around often and staying with friends and family. Football was one of the few things he could rely on.
"The crowds used to get excited when I played angry," he said. "Once I got angry, I made better plays. They knew something was gonna happen."
Woods first met Butler-Byrd in Los Angeles when he was a junior in high school. He was working out with his younger brother when a "little kid" asked if he could join them, Woods recalled.
The former LSU running back said he was unimpressed at first by Butler-Byrd, but when he saw him play, "it took me by surprise — he was better than I thought."
He took a lot of people by surprise, starring as a senior at West Adams Prep. But academic problems meant Butler-Byrd had to go to junior college. He landed at L.A. Harbor College, where he struggled through two losing seasons.
"He was loyal, and he wanted to stick it out for the team, but it was tough," Woods said. "He basically played defense his sophomore year because he thought, 'Maybe if I get a couple turnovers, we can get better.' But it kind of didn't get better."
Butler-Byrd told himself once he got to the Division I level, things would be better. His life would be simpler. He pulled 14-hour days in the summer during 2015 to finish up his academic requirements and get eligible in time for fall camp.
He thought his toughest times were behind him.
Bubbling over
Here's how the spring and summer went for Cory Butler-Byrd: In spring ball, while switching from corner to receiver, he suffered an injury that would later require surgery. He got engaged and learned his fiancee was pregnant.
After spring semester, when athletes are by themselves until summer begins, he found himself struggling to pay his bills, fill his gas tank, and put food in the fridge.
It was real life, and it was coming at him faster than any defender. Butler-Byrd asked Utah athletics for more financial support, but NCAA rules tied their hands, he said.
In Butler-Byrd's mind, he had made sacrifices for the Utes: On the day of his surgery, he came back to the Utah football offices to make calls to the Crimson Club to thank them for his scholarship.
"I didn't have no gas, I didn't have no food, and my fiancee is pregnant," he said. "I needed help."
When the help he sought didn't come, Butler-Byrd began to crack. He broke his phone. He punched the walls of his apartment. The anger that once served him so well on the field started to bleed into his life. Friends knew he was struggling, but he tried to keep his frustration bottled up.
But anyone who has watched a pot boil over knows how trying to keep heat and pressure contained works out.
On the night of July 27, Butler-Byrd exploded. He didn't explain what exactly set him off, but in his view, it was anger that had spent years bubbling to the surface. He jumped up and down on the roof of a police car, denting the roof and shattering the back windshield. He threw a piece of wood through the window of a campus police building on South Campus Drive, breaking the glass and alerting police, who quickly found him.
The statement of probable cause suggests Butler-Byrd came to his senses when confronted by officers, and he came into the station "of his own accord" and admitted to the damage. That's his account as well.
"I wasn't in my right mind," he said. "It was dark out. I didn't really know it was a police car until after. ... Once I broke the window, 'I was like, OK, I didn't really mean to do that.' "
Coach Kyle Whittingham suspended Butler-Byrd from all team activities, and made him sit two games after the misdemeanor charge was filed.
Butler-Byrd is still paying for his outburst: His guilty plea in abeyance, entered in August, requires him to pay $1,691.50 in restitution for the damage he caused, not commit another crime in the next year, and submit to mental health counseling. If he completes those requirements, the charge will be wiped from his record.
The key, those close to him say, is counseling: Finally talking to a professional about his anger has turned him around.
"It saved his life," Woods said. "I don't think he wanted to accept that he needed help. I think it was something he needed to go through, and I'm glad it happened when it did."
New perspective, purpose
On Monday evening, Butler-Byrd took his family to Joe Williams' house, as the teammates do up to five times per week. They had steak, potatoes and greens prepared by Williams' fiancee, Jasmine Jones (Cory's fiancee, Eunique Shaw, cooks when Williams and Jones come over). The two teammates played Madden, watched Monday Night Football and doted on Butler-Byrd's seven-week old son, Cory Butler II.
It's one of the subtle ways Williams has helped support Butler-Byrd in the past few months. But Williams, who had to make a comeback himself this season, has seen a change in his best friend on the team since his baby arrived on Oct. 1.
"He's a lot more vibrant after his [child's] birth and everything," Williams said. "Being a godfather to his son is a pride. It's a blessing to be in that little boy's life."
Parenting, as one imagines, has brought new challenges to Butler-Byrd and Shaw, who hope to be married soon, when they can afford it. Woods spent last weekend with the couple, and taught them how to swaddle the infant to calm his crying.
But there's little doubting Butler-Byrd's enthusiasm for fatherhood. His Instagram account is full with pictures of the baby. For his Senior Day honors, Butler-Byrd brought his sleeping son with him out of the locker room.
"He was asleep the entire game — he even slept through the cannons," Butler-Byrd said. "For his first time to come into a stadium in his first month-and-a-half on Earth, to be in the middle of that, I'm pretty sure when he grows up, I'll be able to tell him about it and he's gonna love it."
Counseling, he said, has taught him that he has more allies and tools at his disposal than previously thought. He's also gained perspective on his anger, and been able to vent without throwing phones or punching walls.
"That's why I say it was a blessing in disguise," he said. "I have a better outlook on the type of person I am. I've got better choices of tools that I feel like I have no way out and feel like I'm cornered."
Williams and cornerbacks coach Sharrieff Shah have been some of his closest confidantes. In turn, he's succeeded on the field, totaling 792 all-purpose yards this year (113 per game), second only to Williams.
As anyone will, Butler-Byrd is sure to face more frustration, and work through more anger. But those around him believe he's learned his lesson, and he won't let it boil up again.
He's taken his shot. He's bounced back up.
"You can tell he's more humble, more calm, and a loss doesn't frustrate him as much as it used to," Woods said. "I think he was always suppressing anger instead of helping himself. But since then, it's been this obvious change. He's finally accepted it, and he's attacking it."
Twitter: @kylegoon —
An eventful year
March 22 • Cory Butler-Byrd opens spring camp at receiver after playing mostly cornerback in the prior season.
April 11 • Utes announce Butler-Byrd will miss rest of spring with injury for which he required surgery.
July 27 • Butler-Byrd is arrested by campus police for damaging a police vehicle and building and is released.
Aug. 3 • Utes announce Butler-Byrd is suspended from team activities for "personal reasons."
Aug. 9 • A criminal misdemeanor charge is filed in Third District Court for the July 27 incident.
Aug. 22 • Butler-Byrd enters a guilty plea in abeyance, agreeing to pay restitution and undergo counseling, and he soon rejoins the team.
Sept. 17 • Makes his season debut at San Jose State with five catches for 66 yards.
Oct. 1 • His son, Cory Butler II, is born and Butler-Byrd misses the Cal road trip.
Oct. 22 • Butler-Byrd has a 99-yard kickoff return in his hometown against UCLA and is the team's special teams player of the week.