# Tonya Butler

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{{short description|American athlete|bot=PearBOT 5}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}}
{{Infobox college football player
|name= Tonya Butler
|currentnumber=37
|currentposition=[Kicker](/source/placekicker)
|birth_date={{Birth date and age|1980|10|20}}
|birth_place=[Atlanta, Georgia](/source/Atlanta), U.S.
|heightft=5
|heightin=5
|weight=140
|highlights=
*First female athlete to score a field goal in a college football game
|pastschools=[Middle Georgia](/source/Middle_Georgia_Warriors_football) (2000–2001)<br>[West Alabama](/source/West_Alabama_Tigers_football) (2003–2004)
|highschool=[Riverdale High School](/source/Riverdale_High_School_(Riverdale%2C_Georgia))
}}

'''Tonya Lynn Butler''' (born October 20, 1980)<ref name="UWA bio">{{cite web |url=http://athletics.uwa.edu/Football_Bios/Butler_Tonya.htm |title=2004 Tiger Football: #37 Tonya Butler |publisher=[West Alabama Tigers](/source/West_Alabama_Tigers) |year=2004 |access-date=February 27, 2023 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050118192827/http://athletics.uwa.edu/Football_Bios/Butler_Tonya.htm |archive-date=January 18, 2005}}</ref> is an American athlete who is the first woman ever to score a [field goal](/source/Field_goal_(American_and_Canadian_football)) in a [college football](/source/college_football) game. She accomplished this feat on September 13, 2003, as a [placekicker](/source/placekicker) for the [University of West Alabama](/source/University_of_West_Alabama) [Tigers](/source/West_Alabama_Tigers), who were competing in the [National Collegiate Athletic Association](/source/National_Collegiate_Athletic_Association) (NCAA) [Division II](/source/NCAA_Division_II).

==Playing career==

===High school===
Butler was raised in [Fayetteville, Georgia](/source/Fayetteville%2C_Georgia), where she played the [placekicker](/source/placekicker) position for [Riverdale High School](/source/Riverdale_High_School_(Riverdale%2C_Georgia)).<ref name="HS1">{{cite news |title=Georgia kicker wants to blaze trail for female football players |first=Paul |last=Newberry |agency=Associated Press |newspaper=The Seattle Times |date=November 1, 1998 |url=https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/19981101/2780913/georgia-kicker-wants-to-blaze-trail-for-female-football-players |access-date=November 26, 2011}}</ref> She won the starting kicking job when she was in [tenth grade](/source/tenth_grade) after serving as the [junior varsity](/source/junior_varsity) kicker for her [freshman](/source/freshman) year.<ref name="HS3">{{cite news |title=Riverdale debuts with female kicker |first=Stan |last=Awtrey |newspaper=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution |date=September 6, 1996 |page=4D}}</ref> As a sophomore, Butler converted seven of eight field goal attempts and 28 of 31 [extra points](/source/conversion_(gridiron_football)) and became the first female to both make the all-area team for [Clayton](/source/Clayton_County%2C_Georgia) and [Henry Counties](/source/Henry_County%2C_Georgia) and honorable mention for Class AAA all-state team as picked by the Georgia Sportswriters Association.<ref name="HS1"/><ref name="HS4">{{cite news |title=Getting her kicks in; Butler's earning fame for skill, not gender |first=Michael |last=Lee |newspaper=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution |date=August 21, 1997 |page=1E}}</ref>

Butler converted five of ten field goal attempts and 20 of 23 extra points as a junior; and seven of thirteen field goals and 64-of-65 extra points as a senior.<ref name="HS1"/><ref name="HS2">{{cite news |title=All-State list boasts first female |agency=Associated Press |newspaper=The Augusta Chronicle |date=December 25, 1998 |url=http://chronicle.augusta.com/stories/1998/12/25/hig_248350.shtml |accessdate=November 26, 2011}}</ref> She completed her Riverdale career with 165 total points, for second place all-time in points scored at Riverdale.<ref name="HS2"/> For her performance on the field, Butler was also named to the 1998 Class AAA all-state football team as picked by the Georgia Sportswriters Association as the first female ever selected.<ref name="HS2"/> She also lettered in [soccer](/source/soccer) in high school.<ref name="UWA bio"/>

===College===
During her senior year of high school, Butler received interest from [Central Michigan](/source/Central_Michigan_Chippewas_football) in [Division I-A](/source/Division_I-A) and over two dozen schools in [Division I-AA](/source/Division_I-AA) for her services as placekicker.<ref name="HS1"/> In January 1999 Butler announced she would play college football at [Middle Georgia College](/source/Middle_Georgia_College) for head coach [Randy Pippin](/source/Randy_Pippin) and signed a [national letter of intent](/source/national_letter_of_intent) for a football scholarship to compete as placekicker on February 3, 1999.<ref name="College1">{{cite news |title=Butler will kick at Middle Georgia |first=Michael |last=Carvell |newspaper=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution |date=January 23, 1999 |page=1E}}</ref><ref name="College2">{{cite news |title=Middle Georgia signs Butler |first=Michael |last=Carvell |newspaper=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution |date=February 4, 1999 |page=6D}}</ref> The signing made Butler the first female to earn a football [scholarship](/source/scholarship) at a state school.<ref name="College2"/> During her two years at Middle Georgia, Butler made 36 of 42 extra points and one field goal for the Warriors.<ref name="College3">{{cite news |title=Female kicker unsigned but not discouraged |first=Chip |last=Towers |newspaper=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution |date=February 9, 2001 |page=2C}}</ref> After earning her [associates degree](/source/associates_degree) at Middle Georgia, she did not receive any scholarship offers to compete as a placekicker elsewhere.<ref name="College3"/> Butler ended up going to [Georgia Southern](/source/Georgia_Southern_Eagles) where she graduated in 2003.<ref name="College4">{{cite news |title=Pioneer still gets her football kicks |first=Karen |last=Rosen |newspaper=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution |date=October 17, 2003 |page=8D}}</ref>

After graduating from Georgia Southern, former Georgia College head coach Randy Pippin, who was now the head coach at West Alabama, offered Butler a scholarship to serve as placekicker for the Tigers.<ref name="College5">{{cite news |title=UWA's Tonya Butler aims for NCAA history |first=Andrew |last=Carroll |newspaper=The Tuscaloosa News |date=September 14, 2000 |page=C1 |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=IyAfAAAAIBAJ&pg=2049%2C2812065 |accessdate=November 26, 2011}}</ref> With two years of eligibility remaining, she enrolled as a [graduate student](/source/graduate_student) and won the starting placekicker position for the Tigers 2003 season.<ref name="College5"/> In the first game of the season, Butler scored on a 27-yard field goal attempt against [Stillman](/source/Stillman_Tigers_football) with 9:41 remaining in the first quarter.<ref name="College5"/> Although initially unconfirmed by the NCAA as gender was not differentiated in their all-time records, it was later confirmed that Butler was the first female player to score a field goal in an NCAA college football game.<ref name="College6">{{cite news |title=Feat accompli |newspaper=Sports Illustrated |date=September 13, 2003 |publisher=SI.com |url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/web/COM1000978/index.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120203033939/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/web/COM1000978/index.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 3, 2012 |accessdate=November 26, 2011}}</ref><ref name="College7">{{cite news |title=Girl power! |first=Jeff |last=McIntyre |newspaper=TimesDaily |date=November 4, 2004 |location=Florence, Alabama |url=http://ftstage.sx.atl.publicus.com/article/20041104/NEWS/411040340?Title=Girl-power- |accessdate=November 26, 2011}}</ref><ref name="College8">{{cite news |title=Former UWA kicker has own NCAA display |first=Tommy |last=Deas |newspaper=The Tuscaloosa News |date=January 26, 2006 |url=http://www.tuscaloosanews.com/article/20060126/NEWS/601260351?tc=ar |accessdate=November 26, 2011}}</ref>

Butler served as placekicker for both the 2003 and 2004 seasons playing for West Alabama. For her career she made 13 of 19 field goal attempts with a long kick of 39 yards, and 48 of 53 in extra point attempts.<ref name="College8"/> Her 50 total points made during the 2003 season led the squad, and she was named special teams captain in both her years at West Alabama.<ref name="College8"/> Butler also was named Academic All-Gulf South Conference in 2004 and graduated in 2005 with a master's degree in psychology and counseling.<ref name="College8"/> In January 2006, her West Alabama helmet, jersey and cleats were displayed at the [NCAA Hall of Champions](/source/NCAA_Hall_of_Champions) in [Indianapolis](/source/Indianapolis) in recognition of her accomplishments as a student-athlete.<ref name="College8"/>

Butler held the record for the most points scored by a female college football player with 87 through the 2010 season when Brittany Ryan from [Lebanon Valley College](/source/Lebanon_Valley_College) established the new mark.<ref name="Ryan">{{cite news |title=Kickers form bond and find sorority |first=George |last=Vecsey |newspaper=The New York Times |date=October 8, 2010 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/09/sports/ncaafootball/09vecsey.html |accessdate=November 26, 2011}}</ref>

==See also==
*[List of female American football players](/source/List_of_female_American_football_players)
*[Sarah Fuller](/source/Sarah_Fuller_(athlete)), the first woman to score in a [Power Five conferences](/source/Power_Five_conferences) football game
*[Liz Heaston](/source/Liz_Heaston), first female to play and score in a [college football](/source/college_football) [game](/source/1997_Linfield_vs._Willamette_football_game)
*[Katie Hnida](/source/Katie_Hnida), the first woman to score in a [FBS](/source/Football_Bowl_Subdivision) game
*[Becca Longo](/source/Becca_Longo), first woman to receive an NCAA football scholarship to a Division II or better school
*[Haley Van Voorhis](/source/Haley_Van_Voorhis), the first female to play a non-kicking position in an NCAA game at any level

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Butler, Tonya}}
Category:1980 births
Category:Living people
Category:Players of American football from Fayetteville, Georgia
Category:Female players of American football
Category:American football placekickers
Category:Middle Georgia Warriors football players
Category:West Alabama Tigers football players

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Tonya Butler](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonya_Butler) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonya_Butler?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.