Dec. 23, 2010
Georgia Tech cornerback Mario Butler is one of 32 seniors around the nation that have accepted an invitation to play in the 86th East-West Shrine Game® on January 22, 2011.
This mark’s the sixth-straight year that Georgia Tech has had a representative in the East-West Shrine Game. Cord Howard (2009), Darryl Richard and Jahi Word-Daniels (2008), Gary Guyton (2007), KaMichael Hall and Kenny Scott (2006), and Gerris Wilkinson, Dawan Landry and Eric Henderson (2005) have all played in the game in that time span.
The game will kickoff at 4 p.m., and will be held at the Florida Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Florida.
Butler, a native of Jacksonville, Fla., has 47 tackles, 2.0 tackles for loss, five pass breakups, one interception, one fumble recovery and one forced fumble so far on the season. The senior cornerback has played in 51 career games for Georgia Tech, making 39 consecutive starts.
He will play his final game in a Georgia Tech uniform on Tuesday, Dec. 27, when the Yellow Jackets face Air Force in the Independence Bowl in Shreveport, La. Game time is set for 5 p.m. ET as the game will be nationally-televised on ESPN 2.
Football greats, such as John Elway, Tom Brady, Brett Favre and 62 NFL Hall of Famers have played in the East-West Shrine Game®, America’s longest-running college all-star football game. While the teams are divided by East and West, the players come together for the beneficiary of the event, Shriners Hospitals for Children®, an international pediatric specialty health care system of 22 hospitals.
Former NFL coaches Wade Phillips and Dan Reeves will coach opposite each other in the East-West Shrine Game®.
“The East-West Shrine Game® has always fielded players among college football’s best,” said East-West Shrine Game® Executive Director Harold Richardson. “With all 32 NFL teams represented by GM, coaches and scouts during game week, our players have the terrific opportunity to showcase their talents and get their first glimpse of life in the NFL…’Just like on Sunday.'”
Shriners Hospitals for Children® is a health care system of 22 hospitals dedicated to improving the lives of children by providing pediatric specialty care, innovative research and outstanding teaching programs for medical professionals. Children up to the age of 18 with orthopaedic conditions, burns, spinal cord injuries and cleft lip and palate are eligible for care, and receive all services in a family-centered environment, regardless of the patients’ ability to pay. For more information, please visit www.shrinershospitals.org
