An erstwhile Nebraska football player has made a move closer to his boyhood home.
In late January, Tony Butler announced in a very classy, heartfelt post on Twitter that he will be entering the NCAA transfer database. That move served as the first step in a departure from the Nebraska football program.
A month later, on the same social media website, Butler announced that he has committed to continuing his collegiate playing career at Kent State.
Butler played his high school in Lakewood, Ohio. That city is less than an hour from the Kent State campus at which the defensive back will continue his collegiate playing career.
Butler will be leaving Nebraska football as a graduate transfer. The 2020 season will be his final year of collegiate eligibility.
A three-star 2016 signee, Butler was rated as the No. 22 player regardless of position in the state of Ohio. He took a redshirt as a true freshman.
The past three seasons, Butler played in 27 games. Four of those appearances came in 2019, which was likely the trigger for the decision to transfer. Most of the games played came on special teams.
Butler was the third player to leave the Nebraska football program in a week.
Linebacker Pernell Jefferson, a three-star 2016 signee, entered the portal the Wednesday before. Days before that, offensive lineman John Raridon decided to retire from football to pursue a career in architecture.
Since then, four Nebraska football players left the program as well. Included in that were both of the Cornhuskers’ primary kickers in 2019 (HERE), a running back (HERE) and a wide receiver (HERE).
Kent State, meanwhile, is coming off just its fifth bowl-eligible season in the past four decades. The Golden Flashes also captured its first-ever bowl win following the 2019 regular season.