Who is the greatest athlete in Butte High history?

My brother will probably tell you that it is Todd Ericson. Some of the younger generations will tell you that it is Tommy Mellott or maybe even Hudson Luedtke. The old guys will tell you, without question, that it is Bob O’Billovich, and they will think you are a fool if you disagree with them.

They might be right.

However, I will forever say that it is Josh Paffhausen, and my mind is completely closed on the matter. You will get me to cheer for the Packers before you’ll get me to admit anyone was ever better than my fellow member of Butte High’s Class of 1993, and I will never cheer for the Packers.

Paffer was the quarterback of the 1991 Butte High Class AA State championship football team. He led the Class AA in all-purpose yardage two years in a row.

He was part of the Montana Grizzlies NCAA Division 1-AA national championship team in 1995. He switched from quarterback to receiver, and he broke the school record with 15 receptions in one game in 1997. That record lasted for nearly two decades.

He played the rest of his senior season without an ACL in one of his knees.

Paffer was also a great basketball player for the Bulldogs, and he could run like a deer on the track. He was good at anything he did. He probably would have been the No. 1 player on the golf or tennis team, and I bet he would have been a heck of a cross country runner.

Paffer was inducted into the Butte Sports Hall of Fame in 2013 alongside his father, Wayne. This summer, Josh will be back in town to see his brother, Scott, inducted into the shrine.

Earlier today, I caught up with Josh over Zoom for a fun conversation.

Listen in as he talks about his days playing for Bulldogs and Grizzlies. Listen as he talks about winning those titles and the Grizzlies’ return trip to Marshall to face Randy Moss and the Thundering Heard in 1996.

Listen as he downplays catching 15 passes in one game and how he finished that season without an ACL.

Listen to hear why Paffer was always a team player, even if the Butte High school paper once referred to him as “Everybody’s All-American.”