Secondary Not Short On Talent

When Harvard senior cornerback Benny Butler lines up across from opponents’ top wide receivers, he usually has a pretty tall task on his hands.

It’s not because Butler is a bad defender. Far from it. Nor is it because any of his match-ups pit him against Heisman Trophy hopefuls.

It’s because most wide receivers are well over six feet tall. Benny Butler measures 5’8”. And that’s according to the team’s media guide, which is sometimes known to be a tad inaccurate with height.

So, how does he do it? How is it possible that Butler is entering his third season as Harvard’s starting cornerback and fourth season on the varsity? A 35.5-inch vertical leap helps. A 40-yard dash time that ties him for fourth-fastest on the team doesn’t hurt either.

“When you’re smaller, you definitely have quicker feet, better lateral movement,” junior cornerback Gary Sonkur said, who is listed at only 5’9” himself.

But Butler doesn’t care about his height, or lack thereof.

Butler’s 10 pass deflections led the team last season and his interception against Yale sealed both the Crimson victory and his third letter-winning season—a feat only matched by captain Dante Balestracci and senior punter Adam Kingston.

“He’s been a contributor on two very successful seasons and we expect even more out of him this year,” Harvard defensive backs coach Kevin Doherty said.

But despite his stellar performances and notoriety within the team, his name recognition pales in comparison to Balestracci.

For a cornerback, though—whose name is generally called only after being burned for a big play by an opponent—avoiding the public eye is usually a blessing.

And for defensive backs like Butler, undersized and fighting an uphill battle, such blessings are always earned.

“I think ‘technically sound’ is the key word,” Doherty said. “There’s very little room for error. You need to have great footwork. To know where your help is on the coverage.”

This year, Butler’s help will be dramatically different from last season.

Junior Brian Niemczak moves to strong safety from his former position at weakside linebacker.

A clutch performer who recorded 35 tackles last season, Niemczak transplants his hard-nosed linebacking style to the secondary, threatening receivers who dare to come across the middle with punishing tackles.

At 5’11”, Niemczak brings slightly more height to what is for the most part an undersized group.

Senior Chris Raftery also switches positions, trading his spot at cornerback for a “center fielder” role at free safety.

“He’s been a little limited in the fall because his shoulder’s been a little banged up,” Doherty said. “He’s going to need a little experience in the first few games to really get up to speed.”

The tallest man in the defensive backfield at 6’, Raftery brings both his tremendous speed and versatility to the position. With his larger stature and quickness, he should be able to cover large areas with ease. Raftery also possesses great hands, intercepting two passes last season and breaking up six more.

“He can cover a lot more ground now and he’s not limited to one side of the field,” Doherty said. “Our goal is to get the best players on the field and moving him inside and getting Gary [Sonkur] on the field was the best thing to do.”

Sonkur also makes up for his limited stature with superb athletic ability. With a vertical just one inch less than Butler’s, and the fastest 40-yard dash time on the squad, the junior has the ability to stay with the Ivy League’s best.

Butler has been instrumental in instructing Sonkur on overcoming their physical disadvantage.

“I think Benny’s been good in a lot of ways,” Doherty said. “He helps coach out there in terms of getting them to believe what I’m trying to teach and reiterate the key points I’m trying to make.”

Central to the message Doherty is trying to express is the belief that, with confidence, all obstacles of size and skill can be overcome.

“Teams are gonna make their plays,” Sonkur said. “But our game plan is to not let that affect us and do we what we’ve got to do.”

To that end, Doherty has attempted to prepare his corps for a grueling regular season in practice.

“We do a lot of drill work in terms of toughness and combativeness and mental toughness,” Doherty said. “We preach winning the battle despite the odds. We have a drill called capture the flag where we have one guy find a way to win against three.”

With the skill and confidence this group possesses, it should have no trouble taking the ball away against just one.

Staff writer Timothy J. Mcginn can be reached at mcginn@fas.harvard.edu.