The City of Vicksburg is hosting the parade to honor Super Bowl XLIX hero Malcolm Butler Saturday, scheduled for 2:30 p.m. The parade will end at the Vicksburg Convention Center where Mayor George Flaggs Jr. will present Butler with the key to the city.

Parade organizer Angela Jenkins said the parade will feature the Alcorn State and Jackson State bands as well as local cheerleaders, high school bands and community groups. Vicksburg High School’s band, St Aloysius and Warren Central High school dance teams along with representatives from Porters Chapel Academy will turn out to show their support for Butler.

Jenkin expects a big turnout for the parade. “Right now we have about 80 entries for the parade,” Jenkins said. “We haven’t even opened registration yet.”

Any group or organization wishing to participate can pick up an application at the Vicksburg High School JROTC Building on Lee Street across from Memorial Stadium, or they can contact Angela Jenkins at 601-214-6922. There is no fee to enter the parade, but entry forms must be returned to the VHS JROTC building by 3 p.m. Wednesday.

After the parade Butler will be signing autographs from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the convention center. “People can’t bring anything for him to sign, Butler has to sign what we will have available for him to sign,” Jenkins said. “Only 20 people at a time will be allowed into the convention center, so the line will move fast.”

Jenkins said anyone entering the convention center will have to pass through a security screening by the Vicksburg Police Department.

A graduate of Vicksburg High School and the University of West Alabama, Butler, a defensive back for the Patriots, gained immediate fame when he intercepted a Russell Wilson pass with 26 seconds remaining in the Super Bowl to clinch the 28-24 win for New England.

The improbable interception was replayed after the game on ESPN’s Sports Center, which also featured some notable facts about him.

Almost immediately, Flaggs said, he began receiving telephone calls, text messages and emails from residents suggesting the city do something to honor Butler.

“We’re very thankful that the young man involved in the Super Bowl was from Vicksburg,” Flaggs said.
Butler barely played in the first half the Super Bowl game against Seattle, then moved into the defensive lineup halfway through the third quarter with the Patriots trailing 24-14.

On Seattle’s final drive, quarterback Russell Wilson kept throwing in the rookie’s direction. Wilson threw a pass deep down the right sideline intended for Kearse. Butler jumped, reached back and made a spectacular play to knock the ball down.

Unfortunately, the deflected pass fell straight onto Kearse’s legs, and the receiver made a highlight-reel play of his own to complete a 33-yard reception that gave Seattle the ball at the 5-yard line.
His chance at redemption came two plays later. With the clock ticking down and Seattle at the 1-yard line, Wilson tried to throw a quick slant to Ricardo Lockette. Butler was ready.

Butler made a beeline toward the spot where Wilson needed to throw the ball to Lockette and beat the receiver there by a fraction of a second to snag the first interception of his career.

Butler collided with Lockette, got knocked back into the end zone, then sprawled forward to the 1-yard line and directly into NFL lore.