Wildcat football coach resigns

The Columbia Falls High School athletics program will see some changes next fall. Activities Director John Thompson will become an assistant principal at the high school, and football coach Bill Coleman has resigned due to family reasons.

“I feel like I need to spend more time with my family right now,” Coleman said.

Coleman coached the football team from 2009 to 2011. The Wildcats won their first conference crown since 1972 under Coleman in 2010.

“I was really proud of those kids,” Coleman said.

In his first year, the team went 7-4 and lost to Butte Central in the second round of the state Class A playoffs. In his second year, the Cats went 4-5 and lost to Miles City in the state playoffs. Last year, the Cats had a tough season, going 2-6.

Thompson was athletic director for 15 years and head football coach for six. He was also an assistant football coach for five years.

Under Thompson, the Cats also found football success, making the state playoffs twice when he was head coach. In 2007, Columbia Falls hosted its first playoff game since 1975.

Sports and academic programs saw a tremendous amount of success under Thompson’s tenure, bringing home more than a dozen state titles in academics and sports over the past 15 years.