Hugh Campbell

Last updated

Hugh Campbell
No. 31
Position Wide receiver
Personal information
Born (1941-05-21) May 21, 1941 (age 84)
Saratoga, California, U.S.
Height6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight185 lb (84 kg)
Career information
College Washington State
NFL draft 1963: 4th round, 50th overall pick
Career history
Playing
1963–1967 Saskatchewan Roughriders
1969 Saskatchewan Roughriders
Coaching
1977 – 1982 Edmonton Eskimos
1983 Los Angeles Express
1984–1985 Houston Oilers
Administration
1986 – 1997 Edmonton Eskimos (GM)
1998 – 2006 Edmonton Eskimos (President/CEO)
Awards and highlights

As administrator:

As head coach:

As player:

Coaching profile  at Pro Football Reference   OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
Canadian Football Hall of Fame  (2000)

Hugh Thomas Campbell [1] (born May 21, 1941) is an American former professional football player, coach, and executive. He served as a head coach in three different football leagues: the Canadian Football League (CFL), United States Football League (USFL) and National Football League (NFL). Campbell retired as the CEO of the Edmonton Eskimos of the CFL in 2006. He was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 2000.

Contents

College career

Campbell played wide receiver at Washington State University from 1959 to 1962. During that time he appeared in the Hula Bowl, the College All-Star game, the Coaches All-America game, and the East-West Shrine Bowl. Campbell received most outstanding player honours in the Coaches and the Shrine Bowl games. He was also awarded the 1961 W. J. Voit Memorial Trophy as the outstanding football player on the Pacific Coast. During his Cougar career he was teamed with fellow CFL Hall of Famer George Reed.

Professional playing career

Campbell joined the Saskatchewan Roughriders in 1963 and "Gluey Hughy", as he became known, was a key element of their Grey Cup winning team in 1966. Campbell quit the Roughriders in 1968 to take a position as assistant coach at Washington State but returned for a final year with the Roughriders in 1969. In his six CFL seasons, Campbell caught 321 passes for an average gain of 16.9 yards per reception and scored 60 touchdowns, including 17 touchdown receptions in 1966. Campbell received western conference all-star honours as a flanker in 1964, 1965, 1966 and 1969. He was a CFL all-star in 1965 and 1966.

Coaching and administrative career

Campbell retired as an active player after the 1969 season to take up a head coaching job with Whitworth College in Spokane, Washington. During his seven-year tenure, Campbell revived the moribund Pirates football program and was named conference coach of the year three times. [2]

In 1977, Campbell was named head coach of the Edmonton Eskimos, where he took the Eskimos to the Grey Cup game in Montreal that first year but lost 41–6 in a major blowout on an icy field against the Montreal Alouettes. It was the last Grey Cup championship game coach Campbell would lose, as the Eskimos won the next five Grey Cup games, from 1978 through 1982, an all-time CFL consecutive championships record.

Following the 1982 season, Campbell left the CFL to become head coach of the USFL's Los Angeles Express.

After one season, the Houston Oilers, who were bidding for the services of Warren Moon, hired him to become their head coach and help improve their chances of signing the coveted free agent (the Oilers ultimately signed Moon). He was head coach of the Oilers for the 1984 and 1985 seasons, being fired by the Oilers with two games left to go in the 1985 season.

In 1986, he returned to the Eskimos as the team's general manager.

After 20 years as the head of the Eskimos organization, Campbell announced his retirement effective at the end of 2006.

Personal life

Campbell and his wife Louise have four children, daughters Molly, Jill and Robin and son, Rick, who is the former head coach of the BC Lions.

Head coaching record

YearTeamOverallConferenceStandingBowl/playoffs
Whitworth Pirates (Evergreen Conference)(1970–1976)
1970 Whitworth2–72–3T–5th
Whitworth Pirates (Northwest Conference)(1971–1976)
1971 Whitworth2–7NANA
1972 Whitworth7–2NANA
1973 Whitworth4–54–23rd
1974 Whitworth6–34–3T–2nd
1975 Whitworth7–36–1T–1st
1976 Whitworth6–34–35th
Whitworth:34–3020–12
Total:34–30
      National championship        Conference title        Conference division title or championship game berth

CFL, USFL, and NFL

TeamYearRegular SeasonPost Season
WonLostTiesWin %FinishWonLostResult
EDM 1977 1060.6251st in West Division11Lost to Montreal Alouettes in 65th Grey Cup
EDM 1978 1042.6881st in West Division20 66th Grey Cup champions
EDM 1979 1222.8131st in West Division20 67th Grey Cup champions
EDM 1980 1330.8131st in West Division20 68th Grey Cup champions
EDM 1981 1411.9061st in West Division20 69th Grey Cup champions
EDM 1982 1150.6881st in West Division20 70th Grey Cup champions
EDM Total70215.7556 West Division
Championships		1115 Grey Cups
LA 1983 8100.4442nd in Pacific Division--did not qualify
LA Total8100.4440 Division
Championships		000 USFL Champs
HOU 1984 3130.1884th in AFC Central——did not qualify
HOU 1985 590.3574th in AFC Central——N/A (fired)
HOU Total8220.2670 Division
Championships		000 Super Bowls
Total86535.6156 Division
Championships		1115 Grey Cups

References

  1. ↑ "Hugh Campbell Record, Statistics, and Category Ranks". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  2. ↑ Missildine, Harry (February 4, 1977). "Campbell's going back". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). p. 27.
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