Modesto Christian has hired Brett Butler to be its new football coach, just four days before the start of spring practices on May 11.
Technically, Butler replace the ultra-successful Mike Parsons, who stepped down after his second stint as the Crusaders’ head coach, in which he posted a 99-36 record in 11 overall seasons.
In actuality, Butler takes over for Ryan Green, who was hired in January to replace Parsons but stepped down under a cloud of mystery less than four months later before conducting a single practice. Green is the father of highly touted quarterback prospect Beau Green, who was attending classes at MC with designs on playing for his father next season. Where the younger Green will play in the fall remains uncertain.
Additionally, highly recruited tight end Xavier Carlton will play football in Utah next season, thinning MC’s already thin roster.
In Butler, the Crusaders get a Modesto native who’s familiar with the history and traditions of the program, and who brings a background of high school coaching experience. And though Butler says he did not apply for the job in January, and that school approached him about the position, he says he ready.
“Everybody who coaches has aspirations of becoming a head coach or a coordinator,” said Butler, who played a 2008 graduate of Downey High school where he was a member of coach Jeremy Plaa’s first team there. “This is a great opportunity to have my own program and once the opportunity came, I seized it.”
After Downey, Butler played for two season at Modesto Junior College under Sam Young, then at Delta State in Mississippi, where the defensive back helped the Statesmen reach the NCAA Division II championship game as a junior and the national semifinals as a senior. He says developing a practice plan in four days won’t be difficult. It’s getting to the know the players and assessing their talents that poses the biggest challenge.
“The first few days of practice are going to be evaluation,” said Butler. “It will be combine-style evaluation. We’ll move and run around and assess the athleticism of each kid.”
Butler, the founder and owner of The Performance Lab, 417 Galaxy Way in Modesto, says he doesn’t feel like he’s doing Modesto Christian a favor by agreeing to come aboard at such a late date.
“They’ve helped me out by giving me this job,” he said
