PLAIN CITY, Utah - Several coaches at Fremont High school are being called heroes. They teamed up to help revive a football player when a medical problem sent him to the ground.
Monday morning, Riley Linford was jogging with other students inside the gym during football conditioning when he passes out.
"One of the coaches called 911 right away," said Rob Belnap, principal of Fremont High School.
Dispatcher: Is he conscious? Is he breathing?
Caller: No.
Dispatcher: Do you know what happened to him?
Caller: He fell and hit his head.
One coach started doing CPR, while another grabbed an Automated External Defibrillator in the hallway.
Dispatcher: Do you know if there’s a defibrillator inside the school?
Caller: There is.
Staff were able to revive the 16-year-old.
Doctors say if an AED is used within two to four minutes of cardiac arrest, the chances of survival increase by up to 70 percent.
"It's a device that can access an abnormal heart rhythm, charge itself up automatically and shock that heart back to normal," said Dr. Jared Bunch, a cardiologist with Intermountain Healthcare.
Linford was flown to McKay Dee Hospital and is now at Primary Children's Hospital in critical, but stable condition.
The Linford family released the following statement:
"Truly grateful for the quick actions of Coach Bosgieter and Coach Price, and other members of the Fremont High School football team. We know their quick response made a huge difference for our son Riley."
"They don’t see themselves as heroes in this situation but we certainly recognize them as having done something heroic in that moment," Belnap said.
Doctors can't stress enough the importance of having these life-saving devices handy.
"They should be in every sporting event, every school, every university, turning it on and having the device walk you through the essentials steps to save a life," Bunch said.
Fremont High has four AEDs on site.
Each school in the Weber County School District is outfitted with them as well.
