For the past decade, Matt has pursued entrepreneurial ventures in real estate, development, insurance and community infrastructure through M. Butkus Development and Realty.  He also represents his family through Team Butkus and the Butkus Foundation.

 

Matt is the son of Pro Football Hall of Fame linebacker Dick Butkus, and often is dubbed the “second son of ‘51’”.  Matt was born in Chicago Heights and was raised in Florida and California before making Chicago his permanent residence in 2003.  He has a degree in communications from the University of Southern California, where he played defensive lineman for the Trojan football team and was part of the 1990 Rose Bowl championship squad.

 

Through Team Butkus and the Butkus Foundation, Matt helps drive business and charitable initiatives.  Among them: The Butkus Award® honoring the nation’s top linebackers; I Play Clean™ program encouraging proper nutrition, training and participation by athletes, and; wellness initiates through the Dick Butkus Center for Cardiovascular Wellness in Irvine, California.

 

Matt’s grandfather John moved to the United States through Ellis Island, married Chicago native Emma Goodoff, and had nine children, the youngest of which is Dick Butkus.  Dick and his wife Helen have three children – Nicole (“Nikki”), Richard Marvin Butkus Jr. (“Rick”), and Matthew (“Matt”).  Nicole is married to Francis Parrish and has two sons, Ian and Gavin.  Rick and his wife Renee have two children, Richard Marvin Butkus III and Raymond Matthew.  Matt is single.

 

Along with his father and brother, Matt traveled extensively through Lithuania in 2006 where they traced their family genealogy to the community of Plunge in northwest Lithuania.