With a background at Eastern that parallels that of head coach Aaron Best, Butorac enters his sixth season as EWU’s offensive line coach in the 2022 school year. He also has the role of the team’s academic coordinator, and from 2017-19 he coordinated the football program’s many community service endeavors.
In 2021, Tristen Taylor returned for his seventh year and set EWU’s school record in starts and games played with 60. Taylor went on to be named a second-team All-American by two publications and a third-team All-American by three. Taylor was named first-team All-Big Sky, becoming the first Eagle in program history to earn five All-Big Sky honors. Taylor earned a tryout with the Chicago Bears before being named to the CFL”s B.C. Lions practice squad.
Butorac also coached guard Wyatt Musser to third-team All-Big Sky honors.
Eastern closed the 2021 regular season with the best offense in FCS for the second time in the last three seasons, finishing the season first at 554.5 total yards of offense per game. The Eagles were also third nationally in passing (399.4) and second in scoring offense (44.0). The Eagles started the season 7-0 for the best start in program history.
In 2020-21, sixth-year senior Tristen Taylor was the lone returning starter but the Eagles still had a stellar year offensively. The Eagles closed the season ranked third in FCS in total offense (524.9 per game) after leading during the regular season. Eastern was also seventh in scoring (37.7) and fourth in passing (367.3) while finishing 5-2 overall and 5-1 in the Big Sky with a five-game winning streak to end the regular season.
A pair of offensive linemen were honored by the Big Sky Conference in the 2020-21 season, including Taylor, a first team choice who would eventually earn first team All-America honors from the American Football Coaches Association. Guard Wyatt Musser was a second team All-BSC choice.
In 2019, Eastern leaned on an all-senior offensive line, which finished with 181 starts and 233 games played between them. Senior offensive tackle Chris Schlichting started in each of EWU’s 52 games in his four seasons for the Eagles, equaling the school record originally set by Cooper Kupp (now with the Los Angeles Rams) from 2013-16. First team All-America selection Spencer Blackburn finished his career with a streak of 49 consecutive starts (51 total games); Tristen Taylor started all 40 games he played in his career (now 47 through the 2020-21 season); Kaleb Levao had 30 starts and 51 total games; and Will Gram had 10 starts and 39 games played.
Four Eagles earned All-Big Sky honors in 2020. Blackburn was a first team pick, and received a prestigious academic honor when he was selected to the 2019 National Football Foundation (NFF) National Scholar-Athlete Class as one of 12 finalists nationally for the 2019 William V. Campbell Trophy. Shlichting was also a first team pick. Taylor, who will return in 2020 as a sixth-year senior, earned second team accolades, and Levao was honored on the third team.
The Eagles led FCS in total offense for the third time in school history with an average of 524.8 yards per game. Eastern was the only team in the division to rank in the top 24 in total offense, passing (317.1, fifth) and rushing (207.8, 19th), and were second in scoring (40.6). Eastern finished the 2019 season 7-5 overall and 6-2 in the Big Sky to finish with at least five league wins for the 13th-straight season.
In 2018, the Eagles finished 12-3 overall and 7-1 in the Big Sky Conference to share the league title with Weber State and UC Davis. The Eagles won their last four games of the regular season, then hosted three fellow conference champions in the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision Playoffs – knocking off Nicholls, UC Davis and Maine to advance to the NCAA Division I Championship Game versus North Dakota State.
The Eagles set school records in 2018 offensively for total points (647) and most games of 50 points or more (6, tied with the 2014 team), Eastern finished as the only school to rank in the top 20 in the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision in total offense, rushing and passing. The Eagles averaged 528.2 yards on offense to rank third in FCS, averaging 255.9 rushing (10th), 272.3 passing (20th) and 43.1 points per game (fourth).
The offensive line helped Eastern finish with a school-record 6.62 average per rushing attempt and break the previous record of 6.41 set in 2001. The Eagles also added to previous team records they broke for rushing yards (3,839) and rushing touchdowns (41). Senior Sam McPherson finished with 1,510 yards on the season to rank fourth in single season school history.
All five starting linemen earned All-Big Sky Conference honors in 2018, even after two-time All-Big Sky performer Taylor was lost early in the season with a knee injury. Blackburn was a second team All-Big Sky selection for the third-straight season and went on to earn All-America accolades. Schlichting and Levao also earned second team accolades, with Beau Byus and Jack Hunter earning honorable mention.
In 2017, Eastern was eighth in FCS in passing (320.5 per game) and fifth in total offense (476.7), and was also 14th in scoring (34.5) and 11th in third down conversions (46.1 percent). Eastern’s offensive line allowed only 22 sacks in 11 games in 2017, as EWU set a school record for passing yards with 545 in a 48-41 win at Montana. Quarterback Gage Gubrud had individual records of 549 yards passing and 560 yards of total offense in that game.
Coached by current Eagle head coach Aaron Best, Butorac played center for EWU as a four-year letterwinner from 2011-14 on teams that won three Big Sky Conference titles and advanced to the playoffs all three seasons. He then served as a strength and conditioning intern for Eastern while he finished his degree in business (marketing) in 2015.
As a player, Butorac started 15 games as an Eagle, including 14 games as a senior team co-captain in 2014. Twice he earned Big Sky Conference All-Academic honors and had a 3.43 grade point average.
He helped the Eagles finish 11-3 and win the Big Sky Conference outright title for the second-straight season in 2014. The Eagles advanced to the semifinals of the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision Playoffs, and finished ranked fourth in the final FCS poll.
The 2014 Eagles broke school and Big Sky records for scoring, finishing the season with 618 points to break the previous record of 592 points scored set in 2013 in 15 games by the Eagles. Eastern scored 84 touchdowns to break school and Big Sky single season records of 83 set in 2013 by EWU. The Eagles established a school record for average points per game, with a mark of 44.1 (first in FCS) that broke the record of 41.9 set in 2001.
The offensive production by the Eagles in six of their games in 2014 ranked in the top 32 in school history at the time. Eastern had 624 yards against Sam Houston State (ninth), 617 versus Idaho State to (11th), 583 versus Montana Western (23rd), 582 versus Montana State (25th), 573 versus Washington (29th) and 568 against Southern Utah (32nd). The Eagle team with the next-most performances on the list was 2013 with five ranked in the top 32.
The Eagles finished the 2014 season ranked first in FCS in scoring offense (44.1 per game) and first downs (361 total), second in passing efficiency (162.52), third in total offense (513.4) and second in passing offense (328.2). Eastern converted 48.0 percent of the time on third down (97-of-202) to rank seventh, and Eastern’s red zone offense was second in FCS after scoring 94.9 percent of the time when inside the opponent 20-yard line.
In 2013, Butorac was named to the Big Sky Conference All-Academic team in the first of two-straight seasons to be honored. He was a backup center behind All-American Ashton Miller. He helped Eastern set Big Sky and school records with 592 points, 83 touchdowns and 8,002 yards of offense in the 2013 season.
As a team, EWU led FCS in passing efficiency (school record 182.6), and fourth in total offense (533.5 per game), fourth in passing (349.8), 41st in rushing (183.7) and seventh in scoring (39.5). Eastern’s offensive line was selected as the FCS Offensive Line of the Week by Beyond Sports Network twice during the season. The first time came when EWU had 625 yards of offense in a 49-46 upset of 25th-ranked Oregon State (8/31/13) to open the season. The second time came in a 55-34 win at Idaho State (11/2/13) when the Eagles finished with a school record 743 yards of offense.
As a sophomore in 2012, he helped EWU rank seventh in the FCS in passing yards per game (318.9), 14th overall in total offense (442.0) and 17th in scoring (33.7). As a redshirt freshman in 2011, he made the first start of his career against South Dakota (9/10/11) at right offensive guard, but was lost for the season with a knee injury suffered the following game against Montana (9/17/11). He was already replacing Ashton Miller, who was lost for the season with a ruptured Achilles tendon in EWU’s opener against Washington (9/3/11). Butorac made his collegiate debut versus the Huskies following the injury to Miller. Converted defensive lineman Brandon Murphy filled in at that position for the final eight games of the season.
He redshirted in 2010 and was selected as the team’s Offensive Scout Team Player of the Year. He was selected as the team’s offensive scout team player of the week once.
Butorac graduated from Skyline HS in 2010. Named by the Seattle Times as a “White Chip” selection as one of the top 100 prospects in the state of Washington. Was selected to the Seattle Times “Star Times” All-Area team as an offensive lineman. He was a first team All-KingCo League Crest Division selection as an offensive tackle and a second team choice as a defensive lineman. Butorac helped Skyline to a 40-2 record as a three-year starter, including a trio of state titles. He protected the blind side of BYU-bound Skyline quarterback Jake Heaps, who passed for 3,936 yards and 41 touchdowns. Skyline won the State 4A title with a 45-21 romp past Ferris to finish the season 12-2. Before the 2009 season began, he was selected on Ron Siegel’s preseason All-State team. As a junior, he also earned first team All-KingCo League Crest Division honors as an offensive lineman.
Skyline also won the 2008 State 4A title with a perfect 14-0 record, defeating Issaquah 20-15 in the title game. Skyline was 14-0 and won the state title as a starter in his sophomore season as well. He was team captain as a senior and received the Coach Steve Gervais Award as the most complete player on the 2009 Skyline squad. He had a 3.8 grade point average and received a scholar-athlete award from the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame.
His Eagle teammates Evan Day (’10) and Nic Sblendorio (’13), as well as former Eagle Tyler Washburn (’08), also graduated from Skyline.
Butorac married his wife, Holly, on July 3, 2021 and they are expecting a son this Fall. He was born Aug. 12, 1992, in Tacoma, Wash., and his parents are Mark and Melanie Butorac. His last name is pronounced “boo-tur-ack.
