Bucking family tradition, Iowa State offensive lineman Zach Butler went with his heart when choosing a college two years ago.

Butler, a 6-4, 280-pound redshirt freshman and a member of the two-deep roster, decided against going to the University of Iowa, instead blazing a path to Ames and Iowa State.

For Butler, this was a tough decision, considering the fact that he was a highly-touted recruit from Iowa City and his father, Dave, played at Iowa in the 1970s. However, there’s more to the story, Butler said.

“Coach McCarney played with my dad at Iowa on the offensive line, and he’s been a family friend forever, so when he came to ISU, I became a Cyclone fan,” Butler said. “The first day you could call recruits in my junior year of high school, he was the first coach to call me, and from then on he was relentless, calling me every day he could. Just knowing him, I knew I’d be comfortable here.”

Coming to Iowa State, Butler brought impressive credentials. He was named honorable mention All-America by USA Today, as well as being named a first-team all-state player in Class 4A by both The Des Moines Register and the Iowa Newspaper Association.

As a junior, his team finished 13-0 and captured the state title. As a senior, his squad took second with a 9-4 record.

Tom Lemming’s Prep Football Report named him the 43rd best recruit in the Midlands division.

Still, Butler redshirted last season in order to learn the nuances of the college football game, a game that differs dramatically from high school.

“There’s so much more speed in this game than high school. Also, you work more on your technique in college than you do in high school,” Butler said. “Assignments are big, especially being center, because you have to call certain plays and know defenses, which took a little while to learn; after last year, I’ve gotten more comfortable at it.”

Another adjustment Butler said he had to make was going from being one of the largest players on his team in high school to being one of the smaller ones on the Cyclones roster.

“The change in size made me have to rely more on technique than the brute strength that I used in high school,” Butler said.

In spite of the redshirt last season, Butler still took part in the excitement of last season’s victory over the Hawkeyes in Iowa City. For Butler, it was a dream come true.

“That’s where my dad played, and I went to a couple of games there when I was a kid, so playing in front of 70,000 people in a game like that means so much,” Butler said. “Even though I didn’t play, the atmosphere was unbelievable. I cheered my heart out, and I was so glad we won.”

The victory also coincided with his grandparents’ 50th anniversary, giving Butler two important reasons to celebrate, he said. However, the victory was even sweeter, considering most of his relatives are Iowa fans.

“All my relatives gave me crap because they’re Iowa fans, but I was able to throw something back at them,” Butler said.

Despite his family’s Iowa ties, Butler said his relatives still supported him in his decision to go to Iowa State.

“There’s so many relatives of mine who grew up being Hawkeye fans, especially because my dad played there, but when I chose [Iowa State], they all backed me up,” Butler said.

Butler still said he does not regret his decision to come to Iowa State one bit.

“I love it; the student support is great, and I know they’re behind the program and behind Coach McCarney 100 percent,” Butler said. “Once you get to your second year, you’re comfortable. Everything goes by much quicker.”

Besides winning on Saturday, Butler said he has another special goal he would like to accomplish. This one is not for him, but for his grandfather, who passed away Sunday.

“My grandpa, as soon as I committed to Iowa State, was the biggest Cyclone fan the last two years of his life,” Butler said. “There’s nothing more in the world that I’d like to give him as a going away present than to knock a couple people around for him.”