Dick Butkus Award

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Butkus Award
Awarded forGiven to the best linebackers at the high school, collegiate and professional levels of football
CountryUnited States
Presented byDowntown Athletic Club of Orlando (1985–2007)
Butkus Foundation (2008–present)
History
First award1985
Most recent
Websitehttp://www.thebutkusaward.com/

The Butkus Award, instituted in 1985 by the Downtown Athletic Club of Orlando, is given annually to the top linebackers at the high school, collegiate and professional levels of football. The award, named in honor of College Football Hall of Fame and Pro Football Hall of Fame linebacker Dick Butkus, is presented by the Butkus Foundation, a non-profit organization that supports a number of health and wellness activities including the "I Play Clean" anti-steroid program. The award was first established by the Downtown Athletic Club of Orlando, which relinquished control of the award in 2008 following a lawsuit by Butkus.[1]

Traditionally, the award was given only to the top collegiate linebacker. The Butkus Award was expanded in 2008 to include high school and professional winners[2] as part of a makeover by the Butkus family to help end anabolic steroid abuse among young athletes. Three players have won both the high school and collegiate Butkus Awards: Notre Dame linebackers Manti Te'o (2008, 2012) and Jaylon Smith (2012, 2015) and also Georgia linebacker Nakobe Dean (2018, 2021). Five players have won both the collegiate and professional Butkus Awards: San Francisco 49ers linebacker Patrick Willis (2006, 2009), Denver Broncos linebacker Von Miller (2010, 2012), Carolina Panthers linebacker Luke Kuechly (2011, 2014, 2015, 2017), Baltimore Ravens linebacker Roquan Smith (2017, 2022, 2023), and Detroit Lions linebacker Jack Campbell (2022, 2025).

Recipients

Collegiate winners

YearPlayerSchoolRef.
1985Brian BosworthOklahoma
1986Brian Bosworth (2)Oklahoma (2)
1987Paul McGowanFlorida State
1988Derrick ThomasAlabama
1989Percy SnowMichigan State
1990Alfred WilliamsColorado
1991Erick AndersonMichigan
1992Marvin JonesFlorida State (2)
1993Trev AlbertsNebraska
1994Dana HowardIllinois
1995Kevin HardyIllinois (2)
1996Matt RussellColorado (2)
1997Andy KatzenmoyerOhio State
1998Chris ClaiborneUSC
1999LaVar ArringtonPenn State
2000Dan MorganMiami (FL)
2001Rocky CalmusOklahoma (3)
2002E. J. HendersonMaryland
2003Teddy LehmanOklahoma (4)
2004Derrick JohnsonTexas
2005Paul PoslusznyPenn State (2)
2006Patrick WillisOle Miss
2007James LaurinaitisOhio State (2)
2008Aaron CurryWake Forest
2009Rolando McClainAlabama (2)
2010Von MillerTexas A&M[3]
2011Luke KuechlyBoston College[4]
2012Manti TeʻoNotre Dame
2013C. J. MosleyAlabama (3)[5]
2014Eric KendricksUCLA[6]
2015Jaylon SmithNotre Dame (2)[7]
2016Reuben FosterAlabama (4)[8]
2017Roquan SmithGeorgia[9]
2018Devin WhiteLSU[10]
2019Isaiah SimmonsClemson[11][12]
2020Jeremiah Owusu-KoramoahNotre Dame (3)[13]
2021Nakobe DeanGeorgia (2)[14]
2022Jack CampbellIowa[15]
2023Payton WilsonNC State[16]
2024Jalon WalkerGeorgia (3)[17]
2025Jacob RodriguezTexas Tech[18]

Professional winners

Luke Kuechly holds the record for most wins by a player with four awards (one in college and three in the pros).
SeasonPlayerTeamRef.
2008DeMarcus WareDallas Cowboys[2]
2009Patrick WillisSan Francisco 49ers[19]
2010Clay Matthews IIIGreen Bay Packers[20]
2011Terrell SuggsBaltimore Ravens[20]
DeMarcus Ware (2)Dallas Cowboys[20]
2012Von MillerDenver Broncos[20]
2013NaVorro BowmanSan Francisco 49ers[20]
2014Luke KuechlyCarolina Panthers[21]
2015Luke Kuechly (2)Carolina Panthers
2016Khalil MackOakland Raiders[22]
2017Luke Kuechly (3)Carolina Panthers[20]
2018Khalil Mack (2)Chicago Bears[23]
2019Chandler JonesArizona Cardinals[20]
2020T. J. WattPittsburgh Steelers[20]
2021Micah ParsonsDallas Cowboys[20]
2022Roquan SmithBaltimore Ravens[20]
2023Roquan Smith (2)Baltimore Ravens
2024Zack BaunPhiladelphia Eagles[20]
2025Jack CampbellDetroit Lions[20]

High school winners

YearPlayerSchool
2008Manti TeʻoPunahou
(Honolulu, HI)
2009Jordan HicksLakota West
(West Chester, OH)
2010Tony StewardPedro Menendez
(St. Augustine, FL)
2011Noor DavisLeesburg
(Leesburg, FL)
2012Jaylon SmithBishop Luers
(Fort Wayne, IN)
2013Raekwon McMillanLiberty County
(Hinesville, GA)
2014Malik JeffersonRalph H. Poteet
(Mesquite, TX)
2015Caleb KellyClovis West
(Fresno, CA)
2016Dylan MosesIMG
(Bradenton, FL)
2017Solomon TuliaupupuMater Dei
(Santa Ana, CA)
2018Nakobe DeanHorn Lake
(Horn Lake, MS)
2019Justin FloweUpland
(Upland, CA)
2020Prince KollieDavid Crockett
(Jonesborough, TN)
2021Shawn Murphy[24]Unity Reed
(Manassas, VA)
2022Drayk BowenAndrean
(Merrillville, IN)
2023Sammy BrownJefferson
(Jefferson, GA)
2024Christian JonesWestside
(Omaha, NE)
2025Tyler AtkinsonGrayson
(Loganville, GA)

References

  1. Schmadtke, Alan (April 29, 2008). "Downtown Athletic Club of Orlando relinquishes rights to the Dick Butkus Award". Orlando Sentinel. Archived from the original on January 21, 2017. Retrieved April 8, 2018.
  2. Archer, Todd (January 9, 2009). "Dallas Cowboys' Ware wins Butkus Award". Dallasnews.com: the Dallas Morning News website. Belo Corporation. Archived from the original on June 29, 2011. Retrieved January 11, 2009.
  3. "Big 12 Sack Leader Miller Receives Butkus Award". 12thman.com. Texas A&M University. December 7, 2010. Retrieved May 26, 2026.
  4. "Kuechly Earns Butkus Award". bceagles.com. Boston College. December 4, 2011. Retrieved May 26, 2026.
  5. Goodbread, Chase (December 8, 2013). "Alabama LB C.J. Mosley wins prestigious Butkus Award". NFL.com. National Football League. Retrieved May 26, 2026.
  6. Goodbread, Chase (December 9, 2014). "UCLA's Eric Kendricks wins Butkus Award". NFL.com. National Football League. Retrieved May 26, 2026.
  7. Skrbina, Paul (December 8, 2015). "Notre Dame's Jaylon Smith named Butkus Award winner". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved August 6, 2017.
  8. Potter, Charlie (December 5, 2016). "Alabama LB Reuben Foster named 2016 Butkus Award winner". CBS Sports. Retrieved August 6, 2017.
  9. "Roquan Smith Wins 2017 Butkus Award". georgiadogs.com. University of Georgia. December 3, 2017. Retrieved May 26, 2026.
  10. Bonnette, Michael (December 4, 2018). "Devin White Named 2018 Butkus Award Winner". lsusports.net. Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College. Retrieved May 26, 2026.
  11. "Simmons Wins 2019 Butkus Award". clemsontigers.com. Clemson University. December 8, 2019. Retrieved May 26, 2026.
  12. Lentz, Zach (December 8, 2019). "Simmons Wins 2019 Butkus Award". si.com. Sports Illustrated. Retrieved December 8, 2019.
  13. "Owusu-Koramoah Wins Butkus Award for Nation's Top Linebacker". fightingirish.com. University of Notre Dame. December 21, 2020. Retrieved May 26, 2026.
  14. "Nakobe Dean Wins Butkus Award As Nation's Top Linebacker". georgiadogs.com. University of Georgia. December 5, 2021. Retrieved May 26, 2026.
  15. "Campbell Earns Butkus Award". hawkeyesports.com. University of Iowa. December 8, 2022. Retrieved May 26, 2026.
  16. "Payton Wilson Wins Butkus Award". gopack.com. North Carolina State University. December 6, 2023. Retrieved May 26, 2026.
  17. Williams, Jonathan (December 11, 2024). "Georgia Linebacker Jalon Walker Wins the Butkus Award". si.com. Sports Illustrated. Retrieved May 26, 2026.
  18. "Rodriguez named 2025 winner of the Butkus Award". texastech.com. Texas Tech University. December 5, 2025. Retrieved May 26, 2026.
  19. OleMissSports.com: Willis Wins Butkus Award As Collegian And Pro Archived January 5, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  20. "Past Winners". www.thebutkusaward.com.
  21. "Former BC great Kuechly wins second Butkus Award". Fox Sports. May 12, 2015. Retrieved August 6, 2017.
  22. "Khalil Mack Receives Pro Butkus Award(R)". Archived from the original on 2017-08-06. Retrieved 2017-06-14.
  23. Finley, Patrick (June 4, 2019). "Bears OLB Khalil Mack wins pro Butkus Award". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
  24. Pascal, Evan (7 December 2021). "Prince William County's Shawn Murphy wins Butkus Award as nation's top prep linebacker". WJLA. Retrieved 4 April 2022.