Dino Babers may have some trouble with names next year.
The Orange wasted no time this offseason bolstering its secondary by adding cornerback Devin Butler. The senior announced today that he is transferring from Notre Dame and will play his fifth year with Syracuse.
The move comes weeks after starting cornerback Corey Winfield announced he was leaving the program.
That makes it two Devin Butlers on the Orange roster for the upcoming season, the other being the sophomore-to-be wide receiver who caught two passes last year.
Butler is slated to come in and make an immediate impact with the Orange. SU allowed the 12th most passing yards per game in the nation last season. The secondary was oftentimes a key reason for losses. But it was not just because it lacked skill, there was also very little depth at the position. It certainly did not help that Antwan Cordy was lost for the season after just the second game.
Butler had a tumultuous time in South Bend. The four star recruit was expected to finally crack the starting rotation his senior season, but a foot injury and a run-in with the law derailed that from happening and caused him to miss the entire year. Butler has never played more than seven games in a season. His most productive year came as a sophomore where the D.C. native recorded 23 tackles, while also forcing a fumble and had an interception.
While Butler only has one year of eligibility remaining, we saw the graduate transfer path work wonders for head coach Dino Babers last year. The Orange struck gold with Amba Etta-Tawo last season as the Maryland transfer rewrote the receiving chapter of the Syracuse single-season record book.
Although it would be difficult for Butler to shatter every secondary-esque defensive record, Butler is an immediate help to a struggling defense and will play a major part in helping the Orange get to a bowl in 2017.
