2 Butte players join D-1 programs in the MWC
Williams, McCuaig and Davis also move on to 4-year programs
BUTTE VALLEY >> Their time spent on the Butte College football team was brief, but by the end of the 2019 season, they made the most of an opportunity with the Roadrunners.
Center Isaak Gutierrez, receiver and return man Cooper Jones and defensive lineman Adonis Williams, all of whom played one season at Butte, are among the latest group of Roadrunners to sign with four-year programs.
Gutierrez, a freshman from Eureka, joined New Mexico after anchoring the Roadrunners’ highly-touted offensive line in 2019. Jones, of Elko, Nevada, walked on at Utah State, where he will play running back, with the possibility of returning kicks and punts. Williams, originally from Reno, signed with East Central University, a Division II program in Aka, Oklahoma.
In addition, sophomore running back Avery McCuaig is off to Southern Oregon University, an NAIA program in Ashland, Oregon, as well as offensive lineman Andrew Davis, who played for Butte in 2018.
The five are the latest group of Butte players moving on to the next level — after seven players signed with programs in December during the NCAA early signing period.
Gutierrez, who will join former Butte players Jordan Kress and Brandt Hughes on the Lobos, had a number of offers from four-year schools out of high school, but according to Roadrunners offensive line coach Austin Kiraly, was convinced to join Butte with the hope that the opportunity would lead him to a Division I school. He’s reached that goal by joining New Mexico, which plays in the Mountain West Conference.
Gutierrez became the fourth Butte offensive lineman from the 2019 team to
sign with a D-I program, after Brenden Coffey (Auburn) TJ Bass (Oregon) and PJ Braun (Stephen F. Austin) did so in December.
“Isaak was definitely one of my top recruits coming in,” Kiraly said last September. “(I) was really excited to get him. He had some opportunities to go to a fouryear (program). He trusted us to take him in and kind of guide him and help him possibly reach what was really his ultimate goal — which is the highest level of Division I college football.”
Jones transitioned to playing wide receiver for the Roadrunners, after spending most of his playing career to that point at running back. He also served as one of Butte’s punt and kick returners. Like Gutierrez, it was Jones’ ultimate dream to play D-I football.
“My goal has always been to play Division I football, and I was willing to take any opportunity that I could get,” Jones said. “I loved Butte. I’m so thankful that I went there. But when this Utah State thing came about, it was closer to home for me and it just seemed like too good of an opportunity to pass up.”
Jones was in contact with coaches from Texas Tech near the start of the year, but was told that the team was saving its walk-on spots for in-state players. Instead, through a coach who used to be on Utah State’s staff, Jones’ film was sent to the Aggies, also in the MWC, and he began talking with them around the start of January. He made the news official Jan. 21 in a Twitter post.
“I was really happy for about a week, but now it’s time to really get to work and prove myself that I can get on the field,” Jones said. “I accomplished that goal; now the goal is to get on the field and help the team win.”
Williams came to Butte as a sophomore in eligibility, following a prep career at Damonte Ranch High, which led to him signing with the Air Force Academy in Feb. 2017.
After taking a redshirt year with the Falcons, Williams opted to step away from football, and instead focus on academics and other commitments within the academy. But not long after, he realized he missed playing the game. He reached out to the Butte
football team, and visited the campus with his family last February.
“He and his family came over for a visit, and the rest is history,” Butte head coach Rob Snelling said last September. “He decided to come here and we were excited to have him here … He’s a really talented player.”
Williams ended 2019 campaign with three sacks, including two in a Sept. 14 game against Santa Rosa, and tallied 18 total tackles.
McCuaig came off a season-ending ACL injury three games into the 2018 campaign to lead the Roadrunners backfield in 2019. In 11 games, McCuaig tallied 977 rushing yards and seven touchdowns, while averaging a NorCal Conference-leading 88.8 yards per game.
He and Davis join the Raiders after the team last won an NAIA national championship in 2014. The Roadrunners last had three players — Chris Aumua, John Kealiinohomoku, Trevor Candelaria — sign with Southern Oregon in 2015.