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WASHINGTON TERRACE -- There were heavy hearts at Bonneville High School Friday night as the football team hosted Ogden High.
Bonneville's former long-time coach Thom Budge died of a heart attack Wednesday morning at the age of 65. His passing came as a huge shock to the many people whose lives he touched.
"The legacy is, it's unbelievable the things he does," said current Bonneville Coach Matt Williams. "As you look around this beautiful setting, this is Thom Budge. He built this place. Being a Laker, what Laker football is, the 'Pay the Price' T-shirt: This is Thom Budge."
Budge spend his entire 31-year head coaching career at Bonneville High School, where he won 237 games--the second-most in state history. He won 14 region titles and led the Lakers to their only state football championship in 1980.
But Budge's greatest accomplishment may be the impact he had on the lives of his players.
"Coach Budge was all about developing young men. With the game of football, he always said that the game of football was the closest game that he ever knew to the game of life," Williams said.
Williams added that he can't fathom how much he's going to miss Coach Budge.
Many former players wore their 'Pay the Price' T-shirts to the game Friday. The motto was one of Budge's many teachings.
Budge was honored with a moment of silence before Friday's game, and players wore his initials, "TB," on their helmets.
E-mail: jjensen@ksl.com
