Juan Diego Catholic High School mourns death of founding vice principal

SALT LAKE CITY — Juan Diego Catholic High School said its founding vice principal, John Colosimo has died. 

He served as the vice principal and head football coach from the school’s opening in 1999 until 2020, according to a press release.

According to the press release, Colosimo played a “vital” role in establishing the Skaggs Catholic Center, a campus that educates students from daycare through high school. During his tenure as vice principal, he worked alongside his brother, Galey, who is the school’s principal.  

In addition to his work at Juan Diego, Colosimo served as a coach at Judge Memorial, the other catholic high school in Salt Lake County. 

“Beginning with the 2002 football season and continuing until his retirement in 2019, Coach Colosimo established Juan Diego’s football program as the gold standard for sustained excellence in Utah high school sports,” writes Juan Diego in a press release. 

During his tenure, teams coached by Colosimo played in 10 state championship games. They won eight of them. 

According to the school, he holds a tied record for the most football championships in the history of Utah high school football. 

Additionally, the teams he coached won 235 games, scoring him fourth place for the coach with the most team wins in state history. 

In 2014, Colosimo was inducted into the National High School Football Hall of Fame. Just shy of a decade later, in 2023, he was inducted into the Utah Sports Hall of Fame. 

Additionally, in 2022, the school honored him by dedicating the field as John Colosimo Field at Soaring Eagle Stadium. The school’s mascot is the soaring eagle. 

Beyond Colosimo’s accomplishments as a coach, several students he worked with were awarded college scholarships. Per Juan Diego, 12 former players have become high school or college coaches. 

Faith plays a large role in Juan Diego athletics, Utah Catholic schools

When coaching, Colosimo worked to teach his teams about hard work, sacrifice, humility and faith. The latter plays a large role in Utah’s Catholic schools. 

The schools often build prayer into their events, whether they’re during school hours or outside of them. 

According to the school, he began a tradition during the football team’s inaugural season in 2002: The post-game Rosary. 

Whether the team won or lost, after each game, players, coaches and parents gathered in the grotto on the school’s campus to participate in the rosary, a Catholic prayer ritual.

“John was a foundational figure in shaping the identity and success of Juan Diego and the greater Catholic community in Utah,” wrote Juan Diego in a press release. 

The school said it will share funeral service information on its Facebook and X profiles. 

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