Said Butkus: “It is inexcusable to not have HGH testing in place for the 2013 season.  If you care about the health and safety of players you should not play without first conducting HGH testing.  Guys playing clean in the NFL are getting the short end of the stick.  They are being put at risk and penalized for doing things the right way.  Most importantly, young players at every level are watching and paying attention. They are waiting for the players to lead.”

For seven years, Butkus has encouraged teenagers to play clean; that is, to train hard, eat well and play with attitude, instead of resorting to illegal performance-enhancing drugs.  He and his son Matt Butkus formed the “I Play Clean” program to educate young athletes about the physical and emotional risks of using performance-enhancing drugs.  Some 400,000 teenage athletes report experimenting with these substances, largely because they haven’t received formal education about the risks and consequences, or understand how to optimize their training, nutrition and intensity.

Butkus applauds strict enforcement of tough professional standards about performance-enhancing drugs to send a strong signal to the next generation of athletes that the use of such substances will not be tolerated.

The linebacker legend encourages every player, coach, fan and team to take the I Play Clean pledge, which is posted at www.iplayclean.org and located on facebook at i.play.clean.

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Each watch list contains 51 candidates, honoring the now-retired professional jersey number of Dick Butkus, who is regarded by NFL Films as the best defensive player in football history.  The selection panel is comprised of 51 coaches, evaluators and journalists, coordinated by Pro Football Weekly.

The Collegiate Butkus Award watch list includes 51 candidates from 38 universities.  Manti Te’o of Notre Dame is the only returning finalist, after having won the inaugural High School Butkus Award in 2008.  Jarvis Jones of Georgia is a returning semi-finalist.

The High School Butkus Award watch list includes 51 candidates from 50 high schools across 22 states.  Florida (8), Ohio (5) and Texas (5) have the most prep players on the watch list.

Candidates in addition to those appearing on the watch list may be considered for the Award.

Semi-finalists will be named October 22, finalists November 20, and winners will be notified on or before December 4.  The Professional Butkus Award winner will be announced in January 2013.  Winners will be featured in a television special a week before the Super Bowl.

2011 Butkus Award winners:

• Professional: Tie.  DeMarcus Ware, Dallas Cowboys, and Terrell Suggs, Baltimore Ravens.
• Collegiate: Luke Kuechly, Boston College, the NFL’s ninth overall draft pick by the Carolina Panthers.
• High School:  Noor Davis, Leesburg High School, Fla., now at Stanford University.

The Butkus Award was expanded in 2008 to honor linebackers at three levels while helping spread the word about Butkus’ I Play Clean initiative which encourages teens to eat well, train hard, and play with attitude instead of resorting to steroids and related drugs.  More information is available at www.iplayclean.org or at www.facebook.com/i.play.clean.

The Butkus Award, www.thebutkusaward.com or www.facebook.com/51.butkus, is presented by the Butkus Foundation, a 501c3 non-profit organization. It is part of the National College Football Awards Association, a coalition of the major collegiate awards. More information is available at www.NCFAA.org.

The 2012 List:

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The Awards will be announced formally on a special broadcast of Pro Football Weekly the weekend of January 27-29 on Comcast and Fox Sports Network (check local listings).

Suggs and Ware both received 46 points and 10 first place votes from the panel of 51 coaches, recruiters, scouts and journalists, coordinated by Pro Football Weekly.  Meanwhile, rookie Von Miller of the Denver Broncos finished third with 14 points, after having won the collegiate Butkus Award in 2010 while at Texas A&M University.  NaVorro Bowman of the San Francisco 49ers and Derrick Johnson of the Kansas City Chiefs finished fourth and fifth, with 10 points.  Six other players received votes, including 2010 winner Clay Matthews of the Green Bay Packers and 2009 winner Patrick Willis of the San Francisco 49ers.

“Suggs and Ware excelled at beating their blockers and terrorizing quarterbacks,” said Hub Arkush, editor of Pro Football Weekly. 

“Terrell Suggs had his best year in 2011 of his nine years in the NFL, especially against the run.  He understands blocking angles as well as anyone, and has been one of the most consistent pass rushers during his career.  He really stepped up his dominant play when Ray Lewis had a late-season injury.

“DeMarcus Ware is the best pure pass rusher in football.  He is a persistent and dominating defensive player, and overcame an off-season foot surgery to regain his speed and explosion during 2011.” 

In addition to Suggs and Ware, other 2011 season honorees include collegiate winner Luke Kuechly of Boston College and high school winner Noor Davis of Leesburg High School in Florida.  A complete list of winners is available at www.thebutkusaward.com

The Butkus Award honors legendary linebacker Dick Butkus, who wants athletes, coaches and fans to join him in the I Play Clean campaign, which encourages teen athletes to train hard, eat well and play with attitude instead of resorting to illegal steroids.  More information is at www.iplayclean.org

Considered one of the greatest football players in history, Butkus was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1979, following an illustrious career with the Chicago Bears, University of Illinois and Chicago Vocational School. Meanwhile, his son Matt was a defensive lineman for the University of Southern California, and joins his father in philanthropic efforts. Friend him at www.facebook.com/51.butkus.

KUECHLY WINS BUTKUS

I guess that was a sign of things to come. Luke Kuechly has simply been dominating up there at Boston College. It was routine for him to have 10-11 tackles by HALFTIME. That’s a full days worth of work for most players.

So far he’s taken home these following awards:

• Lott IMPACT Trophy
• Lombardi Award
• Butkus Award
• Nagurski Trophy

In case you are wondering Luke finished up with 191 tackles on the season.  Well deserved if you ask me!

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Butkus Award Collegiate Finalists:

• Lavonte David, Nebraska
• Dont’a Hightower, Alabama
• Jarvis Jones, Georgia
• Luke Kuechly, Boston College
• Manti Te’o, Notre Dame
• Courtney Upshaw, Alabama

Butkus Award High School Finalists:

• Kwon Alexander, Oxford High School, Ala.
• Mike Barton, Concord De La Salle High School, Concord, Calif.
• Noor Davis, Leesburg High School, Fla.
• Quanzell Lambert, Timber Creek High School, Sicklerville, NJ
• Antonio Morrison, Bolingbrook High School, Ill.
• Jabari Ruffin, Downey High School, Calif.

Last season’s Butkus Award winners included: Clay Matthews, Super Bowl-winning Green Bay Packers; Von Miller of Texas A&M University and #2 overall NFL draft pick by the Denver Broncos; and Tony Steward of St. Augustine, Fla., now at Clemson.

The Butkus Award® draws attention to the I Play Clean campaign, which aims to end steroid use in organized sports.  Dick Butkus encourages past and current athletes, coaches and fans to pledge their support at www.iplayclean.org or www.facebook.com/i.play.clean.  Considered one of the greatest football players in history, Butkus was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1979, following an illustrious career with the Chicago Bears, University of Illinois and Chicago Vocational School. Meanwhile, his son Matt was a defensive lineman for the University of Southern California, and joins his father in philanthropic efforts. More information is at www.thebutkusaward.com or www.facebook.com/51.butkus.

The Butkus Award is part of the National College Football Awards Association, a coalition of the major collegiate awards. More information is available at www.NCFAA.org.

Collegiate 2011 Butkus Award Semi-Finalists:

• Zach Brown- University of North Carolina
• Vontaze Burfict- Arizona State University
• Audie Cole- North Carolina State University
• Lavonte David- University of Nebraska
• Dont’a Hightower*- University of Alabama
• Luke Kuechly- Boston College
• Travis Lewis*- University of Oklahoma
• Keenan Robinson*- University of Texas
• Sean Spence*- University of Miami (Fla.)
• Manti Te’o*- University of Notre Dame
• Courtney Upshaw- University of Alabama
• Jarvis Jones- University of Georgia

We’ll see what the future holds and who takes the crown in 2012.  In 2011 Texas A&M linebacker Von Miller took home the award.  Who will join him as a Butkus Award winner?