University of Oklahoma head baseball coach Skip Johnson announced Thursday that former OU player and Division I head coach Todd Butler is returning to the Sooners as assistant coach and recruiting coordinator.

Butler, a 28-year college baseball coaching veteran who played at Oklahoma from 1987-88, served as head coach at Wichita State from 2014-19 and McNeese State from 2001-03. He also brings 17 years of experience coaching and recruiting in the SEC with stints at Alabama (1995-00 and 2004-05), Arkansas (2006-13) and Missouri (2020). He has spent the last three years as Senior Associate Athletics Director at McNeese.

As a student-athlete, Butler played for legendary Oklahoma head coach Enos Semore and assistant coach Stan Meek, helping the Sooners to two NCAA Tournament appearances. He still holds the OU single-season record for stolen bases with 46, set in 1988.

"We are excited to welcome Todd back home to Oklahoma," Johnson said. "He spent two years at OU playing and learning under one of the greatest coaches in our game in Coach Semore, and as a coach, established a long track record of recruiting and developing some of the best players in the nation. He has been a part of highly successful teams, both in Omaha and in the SEC. He will be a valuable asset to our program going forward."

Across his collegiate coaching career, Butler has produced 10 top-10 national recruiting classes. His teams have appeared in five College World Series, six Super Regionals and 17 NCAA Tournaments. He has coached 36 combined All-Americans and freshman All-Americans, 171 MLB Draft selections and 45 players who reached the major leagues.

"My family and I are overwhelmed with joy to return full circle to the University of Oklahoma where I began my career as a Sooner," Butler said. "I greatly want to thank Director of Athletics Joe Castiglione, head coach Skip Johnson and Executive Associate AD Greg Tipton for the fantastic opportunity to come back home to L Dale Mitchell Park where great memories will continue to be made. I especially want to thank my wife, Melissa, and daughters, Caitlyn and Kendyll, for their support and love in making this decision. I'd also like to acknowledge the previous OU coaching staffs of Enos Semore, Stan Meek, Jim Fleming, Mike Boulanger and Joe Jordan who prepared me early in my career as a Sooner player and a successful coaching career in college baseball."

During his tenure as Wichita State head coach, Butler oversaw 28 MLB draftees and 11 All-America or freshman All-America honorees. He routinely recruited some of the nation's top talent, highlighted by the No. 2 national recruiting class in 2014. In 2018, Wichita State produced 11 MLB Draft picks, including five in the top 10 rounds.

While serving as associate head coach and recruiting coordinator at Arkansas, Butler and the Razorbacks reached the NCAA Tournament in all eight seasons and made three NCAA Super Regionals (2009, '10, '12) and two trips to the College World Series (2009, '12). As the lead recruiting coordinator, Butler helped sign five top-10 national recruiting classes, including the nation's No. 1 class in 2009 and '13. He helped coach seven All-Americans, eight freshman All-Americans, 18 All-SEC honorees, 67 MLB Draft picks, 18 major leaguers and eight Team USA selections.

Butler had two stints over a combined eight years at Alabama, helping guide the Crimson Tide to four SEC Tournament championships, seven NCAA Regional appearances and three trips to the College World Series (1996, '97, '99), including a national runner-up finish in 1997. Across his two stints at Alabama, Butler oversaw 22 All-Americans, nine freshman All-Americans and 17 All-SEC honorees, and attracted four top-10 recruiting classes.

Butler first served as a head coach at McNeese State from 2001-03, leading the Cowboys to the Southland Conference tournament championship and an NCAA Regional in 2003. It was only the program's fourth NCAA postseason appearance.

Butler began his collegiate coaching career as an assistant at Blinn College in 1992, helping the Buccaneers to a third-place finish at the NJCAA World Series and a Texas State Junior College championship. He then served as an assistant coach at McNeese State from 1993-94 before moving to Alabama prior to the 1995 season. He spent two summers (1991-92) coaching in the Alaska Baseball League and in 1993 managed the Liberal Bee Jays of the Jayhawk Collegiate League.

As a player, Butler transferred to Oklahoma for the 1987 campaign after spending the 1985-86 seasons at McNeese State. In his senior year with the Sooners, Butler earned third-team All-America, All-Region and All-Big Eight Conference honors. His two OU teams combined for an 87-41 overall record, a 33-15 Big 8 mark and two second-place finishes, and what still stands as two of the top-seven team stolen base figures in program history (127 in '87 and 143 in '88). He is still tied for ninth in single season runs scored, with 74 in 1988. He later spent one season playing professionally in the Cleveland organization.

A Sulphur, La., product, Butler received his Bachelor of Arts in liberal studies from McNeese State in 1991.