‘My best friend.’ Mother recalls her football coach son killed at family home in Fresno
_fitted.jpeg "Billy Wright with his mother, Bridget Price. Wright was shot and killed in Fresno on Wednesday, June 15, 2022.")
Bridget Price is remembering her first-born son, Billy Wright, as an “excellent role model” to anyone he came across.
“He touched everyone he knew,” Price said two days after the death of her son, a football coach and mentor with ties across the central San Joaquin Valley.
Wright, 31, was shot and killed in Fresno on Wednesday morning at the family home near Marks and Ashlan avenues. Police have arrested his father, William Wright, 52, on suspicion of murder. Police said the Wrights were arguing over the proper way to discipline children.
“He was never a jealous person,” Price said of Billy Wright. “He knew if he worked hard he could have anything he wanted. He wanted everyone to win and he was always with others regarding job opportunities, etc. He was helpful in giving kids information about going to college via sports or just off their academics.”
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Wright leaves behind two sons, a 1-year-old and a 10-month-old.
“He was an overachiever to be the best dad ever,” Price said. “He loved his kids. ...
“This situation is so unfortunate. We lost a caring, hard working, intelligent, God-fearing, mentor, and loving son, grandson, brother, nephew, cousin, and friend. Billy was not just my first born, he was my best friend.”
More memories of Wright
Wright is also being remembered as someone who wanted athletes to succeed.
Whether through coaching or just interacting, Wright wanted to help.
Longtime friend Dave Rivera said he spoke to Billy Wright all the time and described him as a great guy.
“We all enjoyed coaching Billy in Pop Warner,” he said. “He was a great young man, always smiling and having fun, and with his coaching career at COS, he touched many young men’s lives for the better. He will be missed and never forgotten.”
Wright played football at Edison High, graduating in 2009 before continuing his football career at Fresno City College. After one season with the Rams, he played at Humboldt State for three seasons.
After Wright’s playing career, he was the student relations liaison and intervention specialist at the Clovis, Kerman and West Fresno school districts.
He got into coaching as the defensive backs coach at College of the Sequoias in Visalia for several seasons before he took the role as the student-athlete success coordinator. He also was a coach at Reedley College.
Wright was a correctional officer at Valley State Prison in Chowchilla.
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COS issued a statement regarding Wright’s death.
“The College of the Sequoias was saddened to learn of the tragic passing of William “Billy” Wright. Billy was a Student Success Coordinator at the College during the 2018-19 school year and also served as an assistant football coach that same year. Billy left the College in the spring of 2019 but had recently agreed to return as an assistant coach for the 2022 season.”
COS athletic director Brent Davis described Wright as a “wonderful person, educator and coach.”
“We will all miss Billy’s abundant energy and dedication to student success,” he said in a statement.
Reedley College also issued a statement: “Our former Student-Athlete Retention Program (SARP) Coordinator and Assistant Football Coach Billy Wright tragically had his life taken away from him in a senseless act of violence. ... He made the most of his time with us, serving as a mentor and role model to our student-athletes on the football field and in the classroom. His impact at RC will be felt for many years to come.”
Many took to Twitter and Facebook with countless tributes to Wright.
Former Kerman athletic director Louie Vallejo said Wright came to the Lions as an assistant under the late Anthony Taylor in 2016.
“He always stayed in touch with the kids here in Kerman,” Vallejo said. “He’s always reaching out to them. ... He had a way of communicating with those guys. He was a players’ coach. He wants the kids to go play at the next level. He was willing to make contact for a lot of these kids. He was a good dude.”
Wright is also survived by his four brothers and a sister.
This story was originally published June 18, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
