Jeff Campbell (2025) - CU Athletic Hall of Fame - University of Colorado Athletics

Jeff Campbell

Induction:
2025
Class:
1990

Lettered four years at receiver and return specialist (1986-99) under CU Hall of Fame coach Bill McCartney … He prepped at Battle Mountain High School in Vail; most thought he was too small to be offered a scholarship (5-9, 155), and he only had mild interest from Colorado State and Georgetown, but he as he has said, he picked CU because he, “fell in love with Coach Bill McCartney, his discipline and the way he spoke, and I felt that it was the best place for me.” … Assistant head coach Lou Tepper was one of the coaches assigned to recruit in-state and did see talent in the Vail product … “Lou came to Battle Mountain and told me that they didn’t think I was big enough to play, but that they would give me a preferred walk-on spot,” Campbell recalled. “I told him at that point all I needed was a chance and I would make his football team.” … After the first week of practice, only two days of which were in pads, Bill McCartney had Campbell drop by his office where he told him they were going to put him on scholarship … “Soupy,” as he soon became known by, would amass some impressive statistics, while especially being a thorn in Nebraska’s side: he played a key role in wins over the Corn when they were No. 3 in both 1986 (20-10) and 1989 (27-21): he scored on a 39-yard reverse run to give CU a 7-0 lead in the ’86 game, adding a 14-yard run for a first down in the fourth quarter that led to a Dave DeLine field goal and the final points in the game, keeping NU down by two scores … In ’89, he had punt returns of 47 and 55 yards, both setting up touchdowns that gave CU leads at the time of 14-7 and 24-14, respectively (he earned the Big Eight player of the week honor for his efforts) … Overall in his CU career, between rushes, receptions and punt returns, he had 139 touches for 2,186 yards, an astonishing 15.7 yards per play, with seven touchdowns … The most impressive of the lot was his 28.6 average on 28 catches for 802 yards … Buffaloes were 32-15 during his four years … Selected as the Best Interview Award by the team’s beat media as a junior … As a senior, he earned first-team All-Big Eight honors at kick returner, and was a second-team choice at wide receiver … He was the honorable mention selection at the kick return performer on the conference’s All-Decade team for the 1980’s … Played in the 1990 East-West Shrine Game (caught three passes for 27 yards) … Graduated in 1990 with a bachelor’s degree in Sociology … Selected in the fifth round by the Detroit Lions in the 1990 NFL Draft (the 118th pick overall) … In five seasons in the NFL (1990-93 with Detroit and 1994 with Denver), he appeared in 68 games, catching 37 passes for 517 yards (14.0 per) with four touchdowns … After retiring from football, he has been in medical device sales, working in the orthopedic industry, electro physiology, cardiac rhythm management and deep brain stimulation … He is engaged to Kendra Rostvedt and has two sons from a previous marriage, Blake (22) and Jaxon (12); he will have two stepdaughters (Bryton and Genesee) … He was born March 29, 1968 in Denver.