The rise of Jack Campbell: From B-team center to unanimous All-American

Linebacker Jack Campbell is just Iowa’s 13th unanimous All-American. His collegiate success may be unmatched by anybody to ever play the position for the Hawkeyes. A two-time All-American and Big Ten defensive player of the year, Jack Campbell will leave Iowa City a legend.

But before any of those dreams came close to fruition, Campbell was the B-team center in grade school. Football was just a way for Campbell to have fun, but a suggestion from his 8th grade physical education teacher may have changed his life.

“I guess he saw something in me. He’s like, ‘Hey, why don’t you try linebacker?'” Campbell recalled. “I moved to linebacker and I played quite a bit and I really liked that position. I like the fact I can just run around and have fun.”

Iowa City isn’t the only one in the state of Iowa that knows the legend of Jack Campbell. Before he donned the black and gold, Campbell was leaving his mark dressed in red and white — in Cedar Falls playing for his hometown Tigers.

Cedar Falls varsity football head coach Brad Remmert elevated Campbell to the varsity level as a sophomore, where he played outside linebacker. The staff thought Campbell played well, but decided to move him to inside linebacker his junior year.

“What a deal,” Remmert remembered. “Jack had an outstanding junior year.”

The Des Moines Register named Campbell first team all-state. He recorded 111 tackles, including eight for a loss, five sacks and an interception. The Tigers defense was excellent in 2017, pitching three shutouts and making it all the way to the quarterfinals.

“Sometimes you get kids that take sets off or ‘I’ve got to rest,'” Remmert said. “His mentality was if the coach wants me to do it, I’m going to do it and I’m going to do it to the best of my ability. He was a great player — never let that go to his head about anything and he worked as though he was fighting to get his position every day, and it rubbed off on people.”

Campbell acknowledges his success, but says he makes a conscious effort to maintain humility — which stems from faith.

“I can’t show that in an arrogant way,” Campbell said. “I want to build that route in a humble way and I feel like that’s something that I’ve learned from the [Bible] studies that I’ve done.”

In Campbell’s senior year (2018-19), his game ascended to another level, as did the team. The Cedar Falls Tigers won the first 12 games of the season, outscoring their opponents by a combined 366 points. Campbell became the school’s all-time leading tackler (338) while also setting a new single season record (168).

How much did Campbell’s game really elevate? Coach Remmert says his friends compared his performance in the Tigers’ semifinal matchup to a movie character. Campbell and the Tigers were facing his former Hawkeye teammate Gavin Williams and Southeast Polk.

“Jack, I think he had 20 tackles in the game,” Remmert said. “One of my buddies calls and says it was kind of like Jefferson from ‘Fast Times at Ridgemont High’ where they damage the car before the game and Jefferson goes out and has like 20 tackles. Well that was Jack Campbell that night.”

Coach Remmert’s guess was close, but Campbell had 17.5 tackles. Cedar Falls allowed just 283 yards in a 26-12 win, advancing to the state championship. Maybe Seth Benson should spray paint Campbell’s car “Die Iowa” during bowl week, not that he needs any more motivation.

Campbell and Remmert’s Tigers lost the state championship in heartbreaking fashion. Cedar Falls owned a 16-7 lead in the fourth quarter, but allowed Dowling Catholic to rally to a 22-16 win. Dowling Catholic head coach Tom Wilson had a memorable impression of Campbell.

“When I was at Dike-New Hartford, we coached against Aaron Kampman,” Wilson said. “We blocked him one time that night. I think Campbell is on that level. He’s as good as I’ve seen in the state of Iowa.”

Just last month, the quote from over four years ago resurfaced. Tom Wilson said his mind hasn’t changed.”

Coach Remmert says the school closely follows Campbell’s Hawkeye career to this day, and Jack hasn’t forgotten about his Cedar Falls roots either, attending youth football camps and offering tips and advice to youth football players.

“Those kids were in awe” Remmert said. “Talking about hand movement, hand placement, shedding blocks, just teaching the kids and encouraging them. That’s who he is.”

Remmert recalls watching Iowa play Minnesota in November — witnessing Campbell force a key fumble late in the game.

“Those were some of the things they were teaching those kids.” Remmert said. “He did things right. I’ve been here 28 years now. I can only think of a handful of guys that impact games like Jack Campbell. Just a great kid, he’d do anything for the team. Everything that he’s gotten at Iowa he has earned.”

Football wasn’t the only sport Campbell left his mark on at Cedar Falls. Basketball head coach Ryan Schultz brought Campbell to the varsity level as a forward, even though he had some work to do.

“He had a ways to go,” Schultz joked. “He’s 6’5″ — tough and strong. We joke about it a little bit how he was a bull in a china shop.”

That ‘bull’ was a key cog on a juggernaut back-to-back state champion basketball team. Schultz boasted current NBA player A.J. Green, UNI wide receiver Logan Wolf, Hawkeye teammate Jackson Frericks, and Drake football player Ben Gerdes, along with Campbell.

By Campbell’s junior year he was a starter and a key contributor. His impact spanned farther than his tangible skillset.

“Great rebounder, great shot blocker, great footwork,” Schultz said. “It’s one thing to have a good practice here and there. But when you have a player that brings it like that every day. He never took a play off or a day off.”

Nothing epitomized that more than after the football team’s championship loss, Schultz offered those who played basketball a few days away from practice.

“He [Campbell] was there,” Schultz said. “He might’ve been the only one to show up off the football team and he is over there being a vocal leader.”

During Campbell’s senior year the Tigers were taking on Xavier. It was a great matchup, one Campbell wasn’t going to be held out of — not even with a gaping a hole in his head. It’s his football coach’s favorite story:

“He gets hit in the head, he’s got a cut. They take him downstairs, they say you’re going to have to have stitches and you’re not going to play. He said, ‘No you’re going to wrap me up.’ So they put the white bandage around the head — there’s a highlight out there — so he’s playing with this bandage around his head,” Coach Brad Remmert remembered. “He intercepts a pass, goes behind the back, dribbles down and goes up and slam dunks it. I mean how could you not get fired up for somebody like that?”

Campbell had 25 points and the Tigers won.

Iowa football head coach Kirk Ferentz said one of his most memorable Jack Campbell moments wasn’t as a Hawkeye — it was at a Cedar Falls basketball practice his senior year during a visit.

“This is going to strike you odd, but the first thing I think about is going to watch him practice basketball his senior year,” Ferentz said. “One of the best practices I’ve ever attended in any sport. It was impressive. The whole group was just wired in.”

Coach Schultz remembers that day too.

“At one point Jack had a big dunk in the practice. Coach Ferentz and Coach [Reese] Morgan were up off their chairs clapping. It was an electric moment — a very memorable time.”

Speaking of college athletics, could Jack Campbell have become a college basketball player?

“A couple of coaches in different places told me they definitely would’ve recruited Jack,” Schultz said.

But, Jack chose football. Both his football and basketball head coaches traveled to see their former player’s final collegiate home game. Afterward, Campbell made time to check in with his former coaches.

“It was one of the neatest things to see him after the game and he’s one of the most popular Hawkeyes coming out after the game,” Schultz said. “After a tough loss, very emotional. To see the way he took time with every kid that came up for an autograph and the pictures and the smiles. To be able to put some of those feelings aside and give us the time shows his character.”

Despite all of Campbell’s high school success, he was just a three-star recruit.

“Coming out of high school I feel like a lot of people didn’t know who I was, which was kind of nice, just flying under the radar. Just gives you that chip on your shoulder, all these kids who get all these offers, and then you’ve got kids in the state of Iowa who get overlooked.”

Campbell wasn’t totally overlooked, he had offers from multiple Big Ten programs. Ultimately, he chose to play collegiate football in his home state of Iowa. He may have left a lasting impression on Kirk Ferentz, but the feeling was mutual.

“The most genuine people I’ve ever met, and that just stuck out to me,” Campbell said. “Getting to represent my home state — that’s special to me. Representing the people of Iowa through the way I play.”

‘Playing’ didn’t happen very much for Jack his freshman year: He recorded just five tackles. He weighed just 206 pounds and mostly saw playing time on special teams.

“I set goals every year. I missed the first couple days of practice and I’m like, ‘What do I want to accomplish and what do I want out of my career?’ Honestly couldn’t answer that question when I was a freshman,” Campbell said. “Just being the best teammate I can be and that’s one goal that’s never changed.”

Not only was Campbell a great teammate, he was also an excellent player when his opportunity finally came. His junior year marked his first as a full time starter. He became a permanent team captain, and eventually earned 2nd team All-America recognition.

His senior year was his best yet. He won Big Ten defensive player of the year, the Dick Butkus Award, and was named Iowa’s 13th unanimous All-American. From 7th grade B-team center, to three-star recruit, to the best linebacker in the country.

“My whole goal wasn’t just to win the Butkus Award or win the Big Ten defensive player of the year award,” Campbell told me. “It was all small and focused. And then once I’d achieved those, I’d go for something a little bit bigger.”

“Coming out of high school no one would’ve ever thought that at the end of my senior year I’d have been the best linebacker in the nation.”

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