“Good looking sucker.” A comment that left Harrison Butker feeling mildly embarrassed in the White House last Thursday (July 31). Especially when the comment is coming from the President himself. After all, HB7 is famously an avid supporter of the MAGA King. Even going so far as to describe him as “the most pro-life President.” He joined Bryson DeChambeau, Triple H, and legend Lawrence Taylor to make a statement during the reinstatement of the Presidential Fitness test in Public Schools.

“You have to be strong in mind, body, and soul,” he said. It had everyone in the council nodding as the test was restored after being altered by the Obama administration in 2012. Why the alteration? The 44th president didn’t want athletic performance to be a barometer of student health. Unsurprisingly, Trump disagrees. He “wants to ensure America’s future generations are strong, healthy, and successful,” with this restoration. Hence, the invitation to the NFL placekicker. Caught up in the aftermath of his statement and the White House invitation, Butker found himself blindsided by a loss in a competition he never expected.

Day 12 of the Chiefs’ training camp was a memorable one for insider Matt Derrick. He took to X to share the moment, “1-11! It took every bit of strength, energy and game planning in the book for me to pull it off, but I beat Harrison Butker to the practice field this morning. I will now drink from the keg of victory. #MattVsChiefs.” The post features a photo of Harrison in pads, wearing, what some may believe, a rueful smile.

In the comments, Derrick added on the glory, saying it was a victory that defied all odds. “I needed my win. But Harrison doesn’t have a 45-minute drive to St. Joe everyday, so if he keeps rolling in at 8 am, I like his chances.” And he’s not wrong. Harrison has been the first to enter camp most days. Another effect of “strong mind, body, and soul,” possibly. But while that comment has politicians nodding, a speech he delivered last year has mired him in controversy.

‘Unwoke’ Harrison Butker

Last year, in May, Harrison Butker was asked to deliver a speech in front of students at Benedictine College, and he did not hold anything back. Comments about women, abortion, IVF, and the LGBTQ+ community were passed, and it has many disgruntled. It’s not the first time he has spoken strongly about his opinions. And neither does he think he needs to apologize for them.

“It was a surprise because I’d been saying similar things to that for many years now and it’s funny what stuff gets picked up” Butker said. “I said what I said. I believe in it. I don’t feel the need to apologize for anything,” he continued. He addressed the backlash, but maybe not in a way the secular press would like. It led to comments under the recent post, featuring his statement during the restoration of the PFT, that read “typical catholic preach about morality.”

Butker actively champions traditional Catholicism and family values. And like many of his other opinions, he doesn’t hold back from sharing them. In Benedictine College, he said that his wife, “would be the first to say that her life truly started when she started living her vocation as a wife and as a mother.” His comments have received much criticism. So much so, that the NFL’s senior vice president and chief diversity and inclusion officer had to state: “His views are not those of the NFL as an organisation.”