Budde played college football for the University of Southern California (USC), and was a unanimous All-American and the winner of the Lombardi Award.

In 1978, led by head coach John Robinson, USC won a share of the national championship.

Budde was the eleventh pick in the first round of the 1980 NFL draft by the Kansas City Chiefs.

Off the field, Budde and his wife, Nicolette, worked with abused and neglected children through Camp Opportunity and Division of Family Services in Kansas City, Missouri.

Following retirement from the NFL in 1988, Budde returned to college and earned his master's degree in physical therapy from Loma Linda University.