GREENVILLE, S.C. — Jerry Butler will forever be linked to the Clemson-South Carolina rivalry, which is one reason why he was inducted into the South Carolina Football Hall of Fame on Thursday at the Hotel Hartness in Greenville.

“This is my anchor,” said Butler, who is also a member of the Clemson Athletic Hall of Fame, as well as the South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame.

“I love this place,” he said. “One day you grow up and you are in junior high. The next day you are in high school and it goes like (a snap of the fingers). The next day you are making a decision on where to go to college and trying to get through college. Then the next thing you know, you are drafted and off to the NFL.

“I was blessed in so many ways.”

Butler was not the only Clemson Tiger honored on Thursday. He joined current Clemson linebacker Sammy Brown, who was the recipient of the 2025 Blanchard-Rodgers Award, given to the state of South Carolina’s best collegiate football player.

“It is a blessing to be inducted into this fraternity that has so many great people in it,” said Brown, who is the first Clemson recipient of the award since former quarterback Trevor Lawrence won it in 2020.

Seven Clemson players have won the Blanchard-Rodgers Award since it was first handed out in 2013. Quarterback Tajh Boyd, who is now on Clemson’s coaching staff, won the award in its first year, while defensive end Vic Beasley (2014), Deshaun Watson (2015, 2016), Travis Etienne (2019) and Lawrence (2020) are the other Clemson recipients.

Brown is the first Clemson defensive player, and the second overall, to win the award since Beasley.

“This is really cool. This is a very unique experience,” Brown said. “I do not think a lot of people get the opportunity to be around so many legendary people and legendary players in the state of South Carolina. It is a very unique and cool experience.”

Brown earned All-ACC honors in 2025 after leading Clemson with 107 tackles, including 13.5 for loss. He also had five sacks, six quarterback pressures, broke up seven passes, forced a fumble and recovered a fumble.

As for Butler, he is mostly remembered for his leaping, twisting catch with 49 seconds to play to beat rival South Carolina in the 1977 game.

“When I think about all the things I put my body through, the first thing I think about is, ‘Oh! Do you remember The Catch?’ I’m like, ‘Yeah, I remember. You made that catch and you came down and I totally had no wind left in my body.’ I had knocked every bit of air out of my body,” Butler said. “All of my teammates came running, and I was trying to catch my breath.

“You can’t forget a moment such as that because is changed the dynamics and trajectory of Clemson University Football. I think, since that point, we have been on a tear and we have not stopped and we do not plan on stopping.”

Butler’s game-winning catch over the Gamecocks earned the Tigers a Gator Bowl invitation, the program’s first in 18 years at the time. The next year (1978), Butler helped Clemson win its first ACC Championship in 11 years and finish the season 11-1. The Tigers beat Ohio State in the Gator Bowl and finished No. 6 in the final Associated Press Poll, the program’s highest ever final ranking at the time.

After the 1978 season, Butler earned First-Team AP All-America honors, as well as First-Team All-ACC honors. He ended his Clemson career by setting every game, season and career receiving record he could achieve. He is still considered one of the greatest players in Clemson history.

Butler, who was a walk-on receiver from Ware Shoals, S.C., was drafted No. 5 overall in the 1979 NFL Draft by the Buffalo Bills. He was named the NFL’s Rookie of the Year in 1979 and was an All-Pro for the Bills. as well.

Of course, in Clemson lore, he will always be remembered for making “The Catch” to beat South Carolina in the 1977 game.