Prayers Pouring In After ‘Beloved’ Football Coach Dies Suddenly At 56 originally appeared on The Spun.
Prayers are pouring in after a beloved football coach died suddenly at 56 years old.
Travis Pride, a longtime high school football coach in Texas, died unexpectedly at 56 years old. He had been the head coach of Northwest ISD’s Byron Nelson High School for roughly a decade, also serving as the school’s athletic director. The school announced his passing in a letter to parents and students.
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“My heart breaks to share that we will no longer see the amazing impact one of our educators will have on students, as I’m deeply saddened to share that Travis Pride, head coach of our football program and campus athletic director, passed away unexpectedly,” the letter reads.
“For nearly a decade, Coach Pride has made a positive difference in the lives of hundreds, if not thousands, of students on our campus. While he led the football program, Coach Pride’s impact extended well beyond athletics or the students he coached. Coach Pride was a successful football coach, but I will remember him more for the engaging and supporting culture he has cultivated on our campus.
“Joel Johnson, executive director of athletics for Northwest ISD, shared that Coach Pride was a leader who put the best interests of students ahead of the sport.”
Detailed view of a Nike logo on a footballMark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
“When I think of Travis Pride, I think of someone who supported student activity, from athletic programs to fine arts,” Johnson said. “Coach Pride lacked an ego when it came to the athletic programs at Byron Nelson. He wasn’t what you would picture as a head football coach, as he was an even-tempered leader who was a kid magnet – students wanted to be around him, because he cared about them.”
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Prayers are pouring in for Travis’s friends and family members.
Daryl Fowler, president of the Byron Nelson High School Football Booster club, spoke out.
“I just appreciate the simplicity in which he lived his life. He had farm animals, he just was a hard worker and he was always willing to do the things that other people may not want to do,” he said.
“As simple as setting up the football field, taking down the cones. I mean, he’s the head football coach. He was willing to do all the jobs and to me, that showed just a servant’s attitude about how he approached his job. He was never too big to do the things that he knew needed to be done to make sure his kids were taken care of and his program was taken care of.”
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Our thoughts are with his friends and family members.
Prayers Pouring In After ‘Beloved’ Football Coach Dies Suddenly At 56 first appeared on The Spun on Jun 22, 2025
This story was originally reported by The Spun on Jun 22, 2025, where it first appeared.