Frank John Butler (May 3, 1909October 30, 1979) was an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

player who was an

offensive lineman In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line, while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line. A numbe ...

for four seasons in the National Football League (NFL) for the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...

. Prior to his professional football career, he played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

for the Michigan State Spartans, where he was named an All-Big Ten player. He was a member of the Packers' 1936 NFL Championship team.

Early life and college

Frank Butler was born May 3, 1909, in

Bloomington, Illinois Bloomington is a city and the county seat of McLean County, Illinois, United States. It is adjacent to the town of Normal, and is the more populous of the two principal municipalities of the Bloomington–Normal metropolitan area. Bloomington ...

. He graduated from Tilden High School before attending

Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the fi ...

. During his time at Michigan State, he played for the football team, where he was named an All-Big Ten player.

Career

Butler joined the

prior to the

1934 NFL season The 1934 NFL season was the 15th regular season of the National Football League. Before the season, the Portsmouth Spartans moved from Ohio to Detroit, Michigan, and were renamed the Detroit Lions. The Cincinnati Reds lost their first eight ga ...

as an

. In his first season with the Packers, he played the first four games of the year. However, he informed head coach Curly Lambeau that he had to resign his spot on the team after he accepted a government job as an inspector. Butler signed with the Packers again prior to the

1935 NFL season The 1935 NFL season was the 16th regular season of the National Football League. The season ended with the Detroit Lions' 26–7 victory over the New York Giants in the NFL Championship Game. Were it not for the cancellation of a Redskins-Eagl ...

after securing a leave of absence from his government job. During the 1935 season, Butler suffered a severe shoulder injury. He would continue playing for the Packers in the

1936 Events January–February * January 20 – George V of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India, dies at his Sandringham Estate. The Prince of Wales succeeds to the throne of the United Kingdom as King E ...

and

1938 NFL season The 1938 NFL season was the 19th regular season of the National Football League. The season ended when the New York Giants defeated the Green Bay Packers in the NFL Championship Game. Draft The 1938 NFL Draft was held on December 12, 1937 at ...

s, although he missed all of 1937. Butler was on the 1936 team that beat the Boston Redskins in the NFL Championship game.

Personal life

Butler married his wife, Rita, on June 27, 1936, in Chicago. The marriage produced seven children. Butler died on October 30, 1979, at the age of 70.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Butler, Frank 1909 births 1979 deaths Sportspeople from Bloomington, Illinois Players of American football from Illinois American football centers American football offensive tackles Michigan State Spartans football players Green Bay Packers players