DELRAY BEACH – All it took was a meaningful game for Brandyn Butler to take over Palm Beach County – for one week at least.
The American Heritage (Delray Beach) junior athlete was simply the best overall player on the field in Week 3 against Benjamin. He made memories which will likely last for this season and possibly even beyond that.
In the Stallions 24-3 home win over the Buccaneers, Butler scored two touchdowns, including what turned out to be a game-icing 48-yard touchdown run with 10:41 left in the game. He also scored on a 32-yard touchdown pass from sophomore quarterback Dylan Risk earlier in the second half (6:53 mark of the third quarter).
“It was crunch time,” the 5-foot-9, 160-pound athlete said. “I been in this position before. I didn’t panic. I just stayed calm and played my game scoring those touchdowns. It felt amazing. At the end of the game, I felt like I played an important role and contributed to the rest of the team. We finished the game out strong.”
Butler, who finished the game with 100+ all-purpose yards, went on to post an easy win as our MVP of Week 3. He dedicated his superb performance to Stallions head coach Brian Sheridan, who passed away earlier this month.
“Before the game I started to think about Coach Sheridan,” Butler said. “We all knew he wanted this win so bad. I locked in and stayed focused on the field. When I had an opportunity to get the ball in my hand, that inner beast just came out of me. Everything I did on the field was for Coach Sheridan. The whole team made him proud on Friday night.”
Butler had more to say about Sheridan.
“When I first met him, he seen something in me that no one saw in me,” Butler said of Sheridan. “I believed in him and transferred to Heritage. He gave me all my supplies to come here. He really cared about me. He would text me and check up on me with my grades and everything. He would always motivate me in practice and always give me credit every time I did something incredible.”
Butler shared a specific moment with Sheridan that stood out to him.
“My favorite memory is when I first met him because that’s when my whole life changed with getting noticed from colleges,” Butler said. “It’s not only football. I took the classroom way more seriously, so I want to thank God for him.”
Stallions assistant head coach and offensive coordinator Nick Martinez marveled at how Butler found a way to step up in a pivotal moment for their program.
“He is a dynamic player,” Martinez said of Butler, who has 249 all-purpose yards as of two games played so far this season.
“He’s someone that’s gonna jump on the radar of a lot of people pretty quickly,” Martinez continued. “We stuttered a little bit early in the third quarter on our offense, let’s get the ball in Brandyn Butler’s hands, let him make something happen. … He’s a guy that the offense relies on big time to show up.”
PHOTO CREDITS: Nick Martinez
