Coming from a high school with many alumni who have played college and pro sports, Joe Campbell was, in the eyes of some, the best of the bunch at Wilmington’s Salesianum School.
While he became a college All-American and earned a Super Bowl ring, Campbell was equally heralded for his recovery from a bicycle accident that could have killed him.
His life did come to a sudden end on Sunday, however.
Campbell, who lived in Tavares, Florida, was found dead after going on a hike and likely suffered a cardiac incident, said his brother Patrick. He was 68.
“Everybody looked up to him,” longtime friend and former Sallies teammate Dennis Kelly said. “Everybody loves a winner, and Joe crossed that threshold into being a pro athlete.”
After sparking Salesianum to its first state football title in 1972, Campbell was an All-American defensive lineman at Maryland, making 17 sacks in his career.
He was two years behind McKean High graduate and fellow defensive lineman Randy White at Maryland, both having been recruited by Terps assistant coach Dim Montero, the former Salesianum coach.
White, who starred with the Dallas Cowboys and is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, was among those saddened to learn of Campbell’s death, which he learned from other ex-Terps.
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“Great football player and he was a great guy, too,” said White, whose younger brother Eric had been a friend and teammate of Campbell’s. “You get news like this, it sets you back. … I’ll remember him as a long, lean guy from Delaware who came in there and dominated at that defensive end position.”
Campbell was chosen in the first round, seventh overall, by the New Orleans Saints in the 1977 NFL draft. Campbell started 26 of 40 games and had eight sacks in his first three seasons with the Saints.
The Oakland Raiders traded for Campbell early in the 1980 season and he helped them win the Super Bowl against the Eagles. He then split 1981 between Oakland and Tampa Bay to close his career, playing in 65 NFL games.
Campbell appeared in the list of Delaware’s 100 most-accomplished athletes published in 2021 by Delaware Online/The News Journal.
“This was a guy who was going to make it. I just knew,” said classmate Ray Peden, an accomplished swimmer who joined Campbell in the Delaware Sports Hall of Fame this year. “Everybody loved Joe.”
Campbell became an educator after his football career but, for the past 16 years, had dealt with difficult health challenges.
While bicycling in Pennsylvania, Campbell suffered a fractured skull, brain damage and his left forearm had to be surgically reattached after a 2007 head-on collision with a pickup truck. He was in a coma for more than six weeks breathing with the aid of a respirator.
“He always seemed to ignore the cloud over his head and pull forward,” said Kelly, who joined Campbell and other friends for an annual get-together in Wilmington after Thanksgiving. “That takes a special kind of person.”
Campbell had recounted his challenges in a 2016 Delaware Online/News Journal story tied in with the 50th Super Bowl.
“I’m enjoying life, yes I am,” Campbell said then, despite still coping with physical problems and memory issues.
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Tom Needles, another close friend and former Salesianum teammate, was shocked and saddened to learn of Campbell’s death.
“He did have his challenges,” Needles said. “But he also made a point to take care of himself.”
Needles added that Campbell had a pleasing humility and didn’t need to live on past athletic glories.
“That wasn’t the most important thing to him,” he said. “He was very down to earth.”
Needles pointed out that, despite his collegiate success and pro career as a defensive end, the 6-foot-6 Campbell was extremely athletic and also starred as a split end for Sallies’ state title team. He weighed 210 then and 250 as a pro.
His catch of Lou Mancari’s 18-yard pass was the only touchdown in Sallies’ 7-0 win at Middletown in the regular-season finale that put the Sals in the state tournament.
“I faked to [running back] Mark [McLane] and everybody jumped on him and I rolled to my left,” Mancari recalled. “That ball probably would have been overthrown to almost anybody but Joe. … I released it just a little high because I was getting pressure and Joe goes up because he’s a big boy, and he pulled it down.”
The Sals beat Middletown again 17-8 a week later in the state semifinals. Salesianum then downed Dickinson 21-6 a week later in the title game with Campbell’s fumble recovery setting up the first Sals touchdown.
In the 1973 Blue-Gold all-star game, Campbell started at wide receiver for the Blue in its 27-26 win at Delaware Stadium.
Mancari also recalled Campbell sprinting downfield to make a tackle and strip the football from a St. Mark’s running back, a game-saving play in the Sals’ 20-13 win on Nov. 3 of that 1972 season.
“He was not a quitter. That’s Joe,” added Mancari, knowing that also personified Campbell’s later years. “… He was a real good guy and a tremendous athlete.”
Have an idea for a compelling local sports story or is there an issue that needs public scrutiny? Contact Kevin Tresolini at ktresolini@delawareonline.com and follow on Twitter @kevintresolini. Support local journalism by subscribing to delawareonline.com.
