‘Everywhere I go, it’s all I hear’: How Butler football is stirring up the community after first 2-0 start in 17 years
BUTLER TWP — Walking into Butler’s football locker room the past few Saturday mornings, Nicco Baggetta has set down a few boxes, popped one open and grabbed a glazed chocolate donut from inside.
Junior tailback/safety Mark Klemz follows, claiming a sprinkle-covered chocolate frosted ring. Golden Tornado coach Eric Christy is sometimes inclined to cheat his healthy diet and enjoy one of the maple glazed variety.
It just so happens, after two weeks, Butler has a donut-shaped numeral in its loss column, its first 2-0 start since 2008. A home win against Meadville on Friday night would put the Golden Tornado at 3-0, something they have not done since 2002.
“Our celebration, really, is watching the film afterwards,” said Baggetta, the team’s quarterback/middle linebacker/donut provider. “That’s the win right there. Everyone’s in a happy mood at 7 a.m. after the game.”
“There’s all kinds of, plenty of high school football movies and things (where) people are doing the wrong thing and making bad choices all the time, so it’s great to hear that these guys would rather stay focused in,” Christy said.
While his players have worked on the pastries, Christy’s made sure they’re not getting too big for their britches, a task that starts with a clicker, screen and all-22 tape from the previous night’s game.
“We’re up, so we’re knocking them down a little bit and trying to show them the stuff that they need to fix and get better at,” Christy said. “We find the mistakes because there’s always mistakes.”
“Who cares about the good plays?” Baggetta said.
The community and people within the high school certainly do. There’s a newfound, almost overwhelming feeling of support for Butler football, a program that left the WPIAL a few years ago to rebuild after years of struggling.
“When I have my game jersey on, especially before Brashear because we were at school, everyone’s walking up to me (saying), ‘You guys ready to win tonight?’” Baggetta said. “Everyone’s all pumped up for the game. Last year, no one approached me, none of the teachers said anything.
“The teachers are yelling down the hallway (now), like, ‘Good luck tonight!’ ... It’s a lot different.”
Klemz and Christy said the team expected its early success. The former said he feels like the team’s offseason work is the reason why Butler has outlasted its initial two opponents, beating Shaler in overtime on the road in Week 1 32-26 and Brashear at home last week 48-24.
Christy sees a different energy — or as he puts it, an “earned confidence” — out of his guys. Yielding positive results, Baggetta said, has bred more motivation to put work in.
“A little pep in their step. They’re walking with their chests a little higher, heads a little higher,” Christy said. “Everywhere I go, it’s all I hear. I just didn’t realize it would be that big of a thing.”
“It doesn’t really make a difference once it comes to the next week because you’ve got a new opponent,” Klemz said. “Knocking us down is good, I feel like.”
Christy liked how full the bleachers were at Art Bernardi Stadium last week for the home opener. He expects a larger crowd this week.
“Especially me and Nicco, we talked about it,” Klemz said. “We were looking at our schedule, and we were like, ‘If we go 3-0 to start off the season, I think that momentum can carry over to a really successful season.’ ... 3-0 brings a different kind of vibe to it.”
Christy isn’t counting his chickens before they hatch.
“We’ve gotta do it first,” he said.
