Earl Campbell played college football for the Texas Longhorns, where he won the Heisman Trophy and earned unanimous All-America honors in his senior season, as well as numerous other accolades.
54 Facts About Earl Campbell
2.
Earl Campbell was drafted first overall by the Oilers in 1978 and had an immediate impact in the league, earning NFL Rookie of the Year honors.
3.
Earl Campbell was named the NFL's Offensive Player of the Year in each of his first three seasons, during which he averaged nearly 1,700 rushing yards per season.
4.
Earl Campbell won the AP NFL Most Valuable Player Award in 1979 after leading the league in rushing yards and touchdowns.
5.
Earl Campbell was traded to the Saints six games into the 1984 season, where he spent his final season and a half before retiring.
6.
Earl Campbell was inducted into both the College Football Hall of Fame and Pro Football Hall of Fame.
7.
Earl Christian Campbell was born to Ann and Bert "BC" Campbell, on March 29,1955, in Tyler, Texas, leading to the nickname, "the Tyler Rose" later in his career.
8.
Switzer, who unsuccessfully recruited Earl Campbell, said in his 1989 book that Earl Campbell was the only player he ever saw who could have gone straight from high school to the NFL and immediately become a star.
9.
Earl Campbell attended the University of Texas at Austin, where he played college football for the Texas Longhorns from 1974 to 1977.
10.
Earl Campbell led the nation in rushing as a senior in 1977, with 1,744 yards and 19 touchdowns.
11.
Earl Campbell was awarded the Heisman Memorial Trophy as the most outstanding college player after the season, becoming the University of Texas' first winner of the award.
12.
Earl Campbell became the first recipient of the Davey O'Brien Memorial Trophy which was awarded to the outstanding player in the Southwest Conference.
13.
Earl Campbell was a unanimous All-American, being named to the first team by every major selector.
14.
Earl Campbell finished his college career with 4,443 rushing yards and 40 rushing touchdowns in 40 games through four seasons.
15.
Earl Campbell was the first overall draft pick in the 1978 NFL Draft, selected by the Houston Oilers, who signed him to a six-year, $1.4 million contract.
16.
Earl Campbell was named the AFC Offensive Player of the Year by United Press International, NFL Offensive Player of the Year by the AP, and the NFL Most Valuable Player by the Newspaper Enterprise Association and Pro Football Writers of America.
17.
Earl Campbell's emergence contributed to the start of the Luv Ya Blue era in Houston.
18.
Earl Campbell finished the season with 1,697 rushing yards and 19 touchdowns, leading the league in both categories.
19.
Earl Campbell set NFL records with eleven 100-yard rushing games, seven consecutive 100-yard games, and 368 carries.
20.
Earl Campbell was named NFL MVP by the AP, NEA, and PFWA.
21.
Earl Campbell repeated as the AP Offensive Player of the Year, and won the Bert Bell Award as the league's most outstanding player.
22.
Earl Campbell was held to just 15 yards on 17 carries against Pittsburgh's "Steel Curtain" defense.
23.
Earl Campbell finished 70 yards short of breaking O J Simpson's single-season rushing yards record set in 1973.
24.
Earl Campbell again led the league in rushing yards and touchdowns, and broke his own record for carries, with 373.
25.
Earl Campbell had four games of over 200 rushing yards, a single-season record that still stands as of the end of the 2016 season.
26.
Earl Campbell threw a 57-yard touchdown pass to receiver Billy "White Shoes" Johnson against the Steelers for his only career completion out of three attempts.
27.
Also for the first time, Earl Campbell did not claim the rushing yards title, as he finished fifth in yards with 1,376 and seventh in touchdowns with 10.
28.
Earl Campbell's 39 carries against the Seahawks set an Oilers single-game record.
29.
Earl Campbell was invited to his fourth Pro Bowl, but failed to make an All-Pro roster.
30.
Earl Campbell's production improved greatly in 1983 as he had 1,301 yards and 12 touchdowns, and was invited to his fifth Pro Bowl.
31.
Unhappy after he was pulled in the second half against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 10, Earl Campbell demanded to be traded.
32.
Earl Campbell completed the season with the team but remained adamant with his demand in the off-season.
33.
In 1984, under new head coach Hugh Earl Campbell, Houston started the season with six straight losses.
34.
Earl Campbell rushed for a total of 468 yards and four touchdowns in 1984, and failed to record a 100-yard game during the season.
35.
Earl Campbell finished the year with 643 rushing yards on 158 carries.
36.
Earl Campbell is widely acknowledged as one of the best power running backs in NFL history, and was highly regarded by his peers.
37.
Earl Campbell didn't have the elusiveness of an O J Simpson.
38.
Earl Campbell is considered one of the greatest running backs in Texas Longhorns and college football history.
39.
Earl Campbell was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1990, along with fellow Heisman winner Jim Plunkett of Stanford.
40.
Earl Campbell became the first Texas Longhorns football player to have his jersey retired by the university, his number 20 being retired in 1979.
41.
Earl Campbell received the most votes, beating out recently graduated Ricky Williams.
42.
On July 27,1991, Earl Campbell was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
43.
Earl Campbell was introduced at the ceremony by Bum Phillips.
44.
In 1999, Earl Campbell was ranked number 33 on The Sporting News' list of the 100 greatest football players, the highest-ranked player for the Houston Oilers franchise.
45.
Earl Campbell was honored at halftime against Ohio State on September 9,2006, including the unveiling of a 9-foot bronze statue of Campbell in the southwest corner of Royal-Memorial Stadium.
46.
In 2019, Earl Campbell was one of twelve running backs selected to the NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team.
47.
On January 13,2020, Earl Campbell was honored during the College Football Playoff National Championship for the 150th anniversary of college football.
48.
Earl Campbell was declared an official State Hero in 1981 by the Texas legislature, an honor previously bestowed upon only Stephen F Austin, Sam Houston and Davy Crockett.
49.
In 2013, the Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award, an award given to the best offensive player in NCAA Division I with Texas ties, was named in Campbell's honor.
50.
Earl Campbell returned to Texas after graduation and divides his time between the family business and raising awareness of MS with his father.
51.
Earl Campbell has experienced various physical ailments in his later life.
52.
Earl Campbell developed foot drop due to nerve damage in his legs, and has difficulty bending his back and knees.
53.
In 2009, Earl Campbell became addicted to painkillers prescribed for his spinal stenosis, taking as many as ten OxyContin pills a day with Budweiser.
54.
Earl Campbell went through rehabilitation and broke his addiction the same year, and since publicizing the incident in 2013 has spoken out about the dangers of substance abuse.