What a difference a year can make. Just ask Wisconsin's Brian Butch.
Last year, Butch was one of the top recruits in the country. His credentials were impressive.
Butch was a McDonald's All-American and a two-time Mr. Basketball in Wisconsin, averaging a whopping 24 points and 11 rebounds in his senior campaign.
The big man with a soft touch was the object of a rough and tumble recruiting battle that ended with the Badgers nabbing their prize in-state recruit over offers from top national schools like Arizona and North Carolina.
The hype was huge. Butch was called a savior and the piece that would put the already talented Wisconsin over the hump.
Then he did something strange, something most McDonald's All-Americans would never think about doing: Brian Butch decided to redshirt his freshman year.
The decision was not an easy one. He would disappoint a legion of Wisconsin fans who wanted to see the freshman contribute immediately, and he would have to watch his team's games from the sideline.
"It was definitely frustrating," Butch said of sitting out a year. "But, once I looked at it from the long run, I knew it would be the best thing for me."
The 6-foot-11, 210 pound Butch realized he lacked the necessary mental and, more obviously, physical attributes to contribute on a Division I level. He didn't listen to his own hype and instead made the decision to take a year off.
"I think it's a good thing for a lot of freshmen," Butch said of redshirting. "It gives you time to get acclimated with the University you're at and get adjusted a little."
Butch certainly made the improvements he needed to make in his redshirt year.
"Physically and mentally I've grown," he said. "I took a year off and concentrated on just growing as a person and a basketball player, and I think I've gotten all of that."
He's certainly grown physically. The formerly meek Butch gained a remarkable 40 pounds, changing his appearance from that of a skinny high school center to one of legitimate Big Ten caliber.
"I think it helps me get position a little better and not get pushed around as much," Butch said of his newly acquired physique. "At the D-I level, you have got to have some weight and some size."
So after a season off and two exhibition games, one in which he racked up 13 points, Butch will play his first collegiate opponent when the Quakers take on the Badgers tomorrow night in Madison, Wis.
"I know he's a skilled player," Penn coach Fran Dunphy said. "I know he knocked it out in one of their exhibition games, and I know he's gonna be a load to handle."
Dunphy, however, as well as the rest of the country, knows relatively little about Butch. He's a completely unproven talent -- a guy who could make major contributions all year or could still be a year away.
But Butch is without a doubt excited about the regular season.
"I'm definitely looking forward to getting out there and playing," Butch said. "I just want to help the team in any way I can help the team."
And although Butch won't be starting as the season begins, a player of his potential should be getting a lot of playing time as the season rolls on.
And against Penn, a team that lacks players with significant size, Brian Butch is certainly a player to watch.
