Matthew Butler's focus pushing him to arrive at Tennessee ready to go

Tennessee signee Matthew Butler is counting down the days. Friday will be his last day of high school, then Sunday, the defensive lineman moves to Rocky Top.

“I'm ready to get to it,” Butler said.

The reality is that Butler is always ready to get after it.

Even a brief conversation, Butler's motivation and drive comes through immediately.

“I just have a reason why I'm doing what I'm doing,” Butler said. “If you have a reason, you are not going to get tired of it.

“This is what I love to do. I want to be great. I want to be on the field, get mean, talk and play. If you are a defensive linemen and you are always poised then you don't love what you are doing. You get to beat a man in front of you man to man and then get to go hit someone. I love what what I'm doing it.

“My motivation is my love for football.”

Butler's joy in football goes back to his elementary years

“When I was 9 or 10, I was playing OL one series, then quarterback the next. The real passion came just before my junior year. Then it hit another level into my senior year. I really focused on honing my craft and laying it on the line for my team.”

Many players have love for playing game. But for Butler, it's more than just the love of playing. It's his focus on the details that makes Butler different. Currently, Butler weighs 267 points. He plans to be at 270 when he gets to Tennessee because of how that weight feels.

“I know it sounds superstitious but I feel I play stronger at 270,” Butler said. “I feel like I run well at 270 like at I do at 265. At 265, I feel thin. At 270, I feel I'm moving well. My times are the same at both weight.

“Talking to coach Rock today. He saw me at 270 at the spring game and said I looked good.”

Conversations about strength training and nutrition with strength coach Rock Gullickson are commonplace for Butler, as are a lot of conversations with various members of the Vol staff.

“We talk weekly, sometimes twice week,” Butler said of Gullickson. “Coach Hoke and I talk once or twice a week.

“Since my official visit, I took full advantage. I talked to guys and got their mindset. I figured out the dynamic of the team. Got to know them personally and cultivated relationships with them. Kahlil (McKenzie) has been great. He has given me a lot of advice. Coach Jones told me that I could be a big part of it. I could change the culture and I could play. I didn't want to just sign and see you in June. I wanted to continue to get to know them and them know me. I have to do my job here to a point that an early enrollee isn't so far ahead of me.”

At 270 pounds, the question many Vol fans have been asking is where will Butler play? Is he an outside guy or an inside guy? Butler has received a clear vision from defensive line coach Brady Hoke.

“Coach Hoke said to maintain my body. Don't gain weight. He likes me at defensive end,” Butler said.

“With the depth at dt, third down situations, and against certain teams playing 3-technique is a possibly and that's not a bad thing. I don't mind playing inside if I'm asked to. I'm going to do what ever I need to do.

“The guys believe in me. There's a sense of urgency in me to come in help.”

“Try to be the best person I can.”

“I wasn't always that mature. I just realized talking about what you do before you do it is stupid. Lawrence Taylor, JJ Watt, Reggie White, Jason Taylor all talked. They were letting you know what they were doing as they did it.”

Getting to know Butler...

Do you have a pre-game routine or superstition?

“No routine. However, I play better with black cleats on. I want to wear black cleats at Tennessee. I wore black cleats in 4 games and had 14 sacks.

So why only wear them in four games?

“That was my way of testing my superstition out.”

“As for a pregame, I do whatever feels right. I never watch film or look at plays the day of the game. I feel like what is going to set me apart is when it's second nature. If you look at it day of, you are going to think about it. You can't have that be your focus. It has to all be second nature to you on gameday.”

If you could have dinner with any three people who would it be?

“If it's a football dinner, it's Reggie White, JJ Watt, and Lawrence Taylor. They all talked on the field. They were letting you know what they were doing to you as they did it.”

And a non-football dinner?

“Abraham Lincoln. I would like to talk to him to see how he kept stable mind it all he went through. Jesus, who wouldn't want to have dinner with Jesus? I don't know about a third one, but hopefully one day someone in the class of 2028 will say they want to have dinner with me.”

Favorite recruiting story?

“I was watching Tennessee-Georgia game game and saw coach Jones leave the field going back to the locker room with his team. “Then I looked at my phone a couple minutes later and coach Jones texted me and said we are about to win. Then he texted me right after the game and said, 'See, told you so.' That was pretty cool.”

What advice would you give to future recruits?

“Get ready now and always get better. You can get cut on the recruiting trail. They are always trying to recruit over you. Always do something to set you apart. And I would say do the interviews. You are building your brand. So do the interviews instead of tweeting everything. Let people get to know you.”