Brian Butch has been called overrated, soft and weak. He's been called flat footed, slow and the worst McDonald's All-American of all-time.
But after averaging 12.7 points and seven rebounds in his senior year, you can add First-Team All-Big Ten Player"" to the list of names he's been called. The only difference is that this one sticks - it goes down in the record books, and none of the Doug Gottliebs of the world can say otherwise.
Still, the last person to say ""I told you so"" would be Brian himself. He's too classy, he's too smart and he's too ... nice. Senior guard Michael Flowers has declined to talk to the media for most of the season, but if there is one guy who has a right to deny a conversation with his critics it would be Brian Butch.
Yet, through all the childish name-calling and criticism, the senior became the spokesperson for a team that has finally won the Big Ten again in a season where Butch finally became the player he knew he always was.
If you think Butch has had it easy, then you haven't been paying attention. Coming to Madison with all the hype that any rare Wisconsin-bound McDonald's All-American would have, Butch redshirted his freshman season because of a crowded frontcourt and an obvious need to improve his footwork.
When he was finally able to look forward to playing in front of a Kohl Center crowd, his mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. Then, during his redshirt freshman season, he came down with mononucleosis, forcing the second-year forward to miss six games and fight through fatigue the rest of the season. He averaged just 3.6 points and 2.5 rebounds.
""The most overrated player in the Big Ten,"" ESPN analyst Doug Gottlieb's said in January 2005.
But Butch chugged along.
As a sophomore, he fought through more obstacles that were beyond his control. The team struggled after sophomore Greg Stiemsma and freshman Marcus Landry sat out the spring semester after failing to qualify academically. He averaged 9.9 points and 6.0 rebounds and the Badgers were crushed by Arizona 94-75 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
But Butch chugged along.
As a junior, things were looking up. He scored a career-high 27 points against No. 2 Pittsburgh in December, and by late February the Badgers had earned the first No. 1 ranking in school history. And then he and all of UW's success literally came crashing down at Ohio State Feb. 25, 2007, when he suffered a season-ending elbow injury. He finished the season averaging 8.8 points and 5.9 rebounds, and his team fell to UNLV in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
But Butch chugged along.
He cried that day at Ohio State. He cried right there on national television, but his tears showed the disappointment and maybe even the fear of only having one year of basketball left. His hard work nearly got him back in time for the late rounds of the tournament, but his team never got there without him. Suddenly, his value was more apparent.
Last Wednesday Butch was carried atop the shoulders of teammates and fans, above the crowd that had stormed the court to celebrate Wisconsin's first Big Ten title since 2003 - the season before the senior forward arrived at UW. His name was chanted over and over again and he spoke to the crowd, only congratulating and thanking the fans for their support, ignoring their past criticism like only the Polar Bear would.
He's the only McDonald's All-American to redshirt his freshman season for non-medical reasons. And, because of that, too many people have called him the most overrated of all-time. Those people forget that Kwame Brown and Shaun Livingston were also McDonald's All-Americans. They were ""so good"" that they went straight to the NBA. But, while Butch was busy winning the Big Ten this season, those two are collectively averaging only 14.9 points per game in their professional careers.
Butch's past obstacles could easily be justified as excuses - none of them were his fault. A parent's cancer. Mono. A devastating injury on a hustle play. Butch would never use them as excuses. He just fought through them.
Now those names don't mean anything. Only one matters: Champion. That's what Butch is now. He's a conference champion, and if you ask him, he'll tell you he's not done.
If you have enjoyed watching the Polar Bear in his senior year, e-mail Adam at hoge@wisc.edu.
