By Frank Pingue
SAN FRANCISCO, Feb 5 (Reuters) - Former New England Patriots cornerback Malcolm Butler may not be suiting up when the Seattle Seahawks and his old team clash in Sunday's Super Bowl rematch, but the man who made one of the most iconic plays in NFL championship history still feels like he's in the game.
Eleven years after his goal-line interception in the final moments secured a 28-24 Super Bowl victory for the Patriots, the now-retired Butler remains a permanent fixture at the NFL's
title game regardless of who's playing — though he acknowledges this matchup holds special meaning.
"I'm always invited to the Super Bowl. I made an iconic legendary play but it don't matter who was playing in the Super Bowl I am always here," Butler told Reuters.
"It can be the (Denver) Broncos and the Seattle Seahawks but this one right here is very special and it feels like I am playing but I'm not."
The moment this year's Super Bowl matchup was set, Butler's clutch pick as a rookie in Glendale, Arizona, returned to the spotlight with Sunday's game in Santa Clara, California, serving as a rematch and making Butler a man in demand this week.
Butler, who off the field is an ambassador for the American Diabetes Association, credits his New England preparation under Bill Belichick for keeping his nerves in check during that pressure-packed moment.
The Patriots had even gone over the exact defensive play in practice before the big game, leaving Butler ready to jump the route with confidence and beat Seattle receiver Ricardo Lockette to the spot.
"We practiced hard in New England under Bill Belichick and with all those leaders, Devin McCourty, Rob Gronkowski and Tom Brady," said Butler. "So you had to practice every day like it was a game so when you get in there it just feels like a game."
As for Seattle's ill-fated decision to throw the ball instead of hand it off to running back Marshawn Lynch from the one-yard line, Butler has no complaints.
"I love it. That was a great call," Butler joked. "You know they was supposed to run the ball but things happen. (If I were the coach) I am most definitely running that ball."
These days, Butler is coaching high school football in Houston and raising four children, though he concedes his young players pepper him with questions about his NFL days, specifically about seven-times Super Bowl champion quarterback Brady.
"When I first got there I was really humble and I didn't talk to them as much about my playing situation but as I got used to them and they got used to me I loosened up a little bit, they loosened up a little bit too," said Butler.
"Now they ask me a lot of questions, like stupid questions, like 'do you know Tom Brady?' I'm like 'man, stretch man, go stretch.'"
(Reporting by Frank Pingue in San FranciscoEditing by Christian Radnedge)
