Several months ago Benji and I sat down for an hour long interveiw with Jason Borba from Cache Sports Media and he later wrote this article. This is the pre- editted article so there are some misspellings.
The soccer
player.
The student.
And the father.
The life of Logan
soccer player Benji Bonilla has been one of humble beginnings. It all began at
a young age in the backyard doing drills with his father. Now he is the leading
goal scorer for Logan High School. “Soccer has been big for me,” Bonilla said. “If it wasn’t for soccer I really wouldn’t be trying in school. I have been making grades because of soccer.”
Bonilla spent the first two years of his life in Ventura, CA later moving to Roberts, Idaho. The summer before entering the seventh grade Bonilla and his family moved for the last time to Logan, Utah.
“My parents told me we were moving and being such a young kid I didn’t have a say in it,” Bonilla said. “They told me I would have a better opportunity to play soccer in Logan, and that’s all I really cared about.”
The move has proven to be one of great success. Bonilla is now a senior and has played on the varsity level for thee out of the four years of his high school soccer career. He also has grew up playing in the Sunday League since the age of 14-years-old.
“We could tell right away that this kid had a little bit of pride and cockiness about him,” said Bonilla’s coach Tod Martin. “But it’s a good thing because he has a great touch on the ball. He is the kind of player that can play anywhere on the field.”
But it all hasn’t been perfect for Bonilla.
He played his entire freshmen year with a torn ACL that required surgery after the season. During his sophomore campaign Bonilla wore a brace to protect his surgically repaired knee. Playing with a brace was something Bonilla struggled with and his production on the field declined.
But it was in his junior year that Bonilla received the most unexpected news.
He was going to become a father.
“It was a game against Ogden and I wasn’t playing good, and Tod came up to me and asked what was wrong,” Bonilla said. “I told him it was nothing because I wanted to keep playing. He asked me if my girlfriend was pregnant and in the back of my mind that’s when it hit me. I told him no because I wanted to keep it on the down low.”
Now Bonilla is the father of a 6-month-old baby boy, Elijah.
“Being a young parent is hard on my right now with school and sports but I have a lot of support,” Bonilla said.
After Elijah was born Bonilla thought about leaving school and walking away from the sport he loves. But with the support of his family, friends and his coach he decided to return to school and continue playing soccer.
“I didn’t want to put any pressure on him to play but you are only going to be a senior in high school once,” Martin said. “I knew he had goals so I wanted him to weigh his options. We talked a few times about his decision. I think he made the right choice to come back.”
Bonilla now balances the tasks of going to school, playing soccer, working and being a father. He understands that he is growing up much faster than his teammates and friends because of what has transpired in his life.
“Everything I do now is for my son,” Bonilla said. “I’ve had to step up and start taking everything a little more serious. It hasn’t been easy but it bugs me when people think that I’m struggling because I’m not. I have had my families support to help me though it all.”
During most home games, Elijah can be seen in the stands in the arms of his mother. Bonilla takes great pride in having his little boy in attendance. After the game he walks over to the stands to be with his son.
“I play and score for him and nobody else,” Bonilla said. “I still try hard for the team but my son is my main motivation. “
Even through all the adversity Bonilla is having the best season of his career. He has helped his team to a 7-3-1 record. In 11 games Bonilla has scored eight goals including a hat-trick against Ogden.
“I have never really been a goal scorer until this year,” Bonilla said. “This is definitely the most confident I’ve been since playing soccer.”
Before the birth of his son Bonilla had aspirations of leaving Utah and going to college somewhere else. Now that Elijah is part of his life his goals have changed. He now plans on staying in Logan, continue working and going to college.
“I don’t have anything else on my mind right now other than my son,” Bonilla said. “As long as he has everything he needs I am happy with that. I know if I go to college he will have more than what he needs.”
Bonilla doesn’t plan on stopping playing soccer anytime soon. After the high school season is over he will be rejoining his Sunday League team. He also plans on playing as much soccer as possible with his son.
“As a coach I am super lucky to get to see Benji as much as his parents do,” Marin said. “I got to coach him for four years and saw him grow from a young boy to a man. I’m proud of him for sticking with it and I know everything will work out for him.”
Jason Borba
