Junior Tyrece Butler often finds himself challenging fellow receiver Braylon Edwards to slam-dunk contests at the CCRB and IM Building.

Both 6-foot-3 wideouts were former basketball stars in high school. And while Edwards, 19, may have some fresher legs than the elder Butler, 22, Butler was a state finalist in the long jump in high school - and he can supposedly jump out of the gym.

So who comes out on top in these "cut throat" match-ups?

"We have some battles, but I got to prove that the older guy has still got it," Butler said with a grin.

Butler finally is showing he's "got it" on the football field as well this season. Butler is leading the Wolverines with 10 receptions for 129 yards, and he's become a clutch, go-to guy.

He caught several key, third-down passes from quarterback John Navarre in Michigan's dramatic 31-29 win over Washington on Aug. 31. And coach Lloyd Carr called him the savior of the game for his hustle play and recovery of Edwards' fumble on a critical fourth-and-two play with 27 seconds to go. If Butler hadn't fallen on the ball, Washington would have ran out the clock and put the Wolverines behind the eight ball.

Butler is just thankful he's getting his named called in the huddle. Coming into Michigan as a freshman in 1999 labeled the No. 11 receiver prospect in the nation by scouting services, Butler had hopes of starring side-by-side with former Wolverine David Terrell.

But after seeing sparse action in six games his first season, his dreams almost came to an end when he had to redshirt in 2000 due to a knee injury.

In his first two years at Michigan, Butler had zero catches.

"He was extremely down," said Mike Gillin, Butler's high school coach at Decatur Central High School. "He was always demanding of the ball, and that's what I liked about him."

Butler wanted to play. He wanted the ball. He remembered reading Keyshawn Johnson's controversial book "Just Give Me the Damn Ball!," a couple times, but he never planned on writing his own novel. He realized that he had to wait.

While he was waiting, he took notes from watching Terrell. He noticed that buried behind all of Terrell's brash confidence and charisma was a tireless work ethic and a "film rat" mentality.

"Dave used to watch film on Sundays, then sneak back into the building on Mondays to watch it again," Butler. "It was definitely something I was missing."

Butler never lacked competitiveness. Gillin remembers when Butler tried out for his sixth grade travel football team called the Junior Hawks. A lanky Butler had to lose 14 pounds in a week to qualify for a spot in the backfield, instead of on the line. Gillin said Butler looked like a "skeleton" by the end, but starred on the team.

And he's looking like a potential star now. After catching four balls last year, including a 77-yard bomb in Michigan's dramatic win over Iowa, Butler has more than doubled his career catch total in the Wolverines' first two games. He said he benefited from the fact that Navarre has confidence in all of his receivers this year - instead of just Marquise Walker.

Gillin isn't surprised by Butler's late emergence. He said Butler started slow but excelled his senior year at Decatur.

"He always felt he had something to prove at Michigan," Gillin said. "He'll make people remember him."