The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

Missing from his resumé is a championship title with the Blue Tigers football team. But Justin Campbell can take comfort in his impressive showing in the classroom at Lincoln University.

The 23-year-old accounting major ended the year as one of nine Blue Tigers to have earned athletic honours from the Massachusetts Interscholastic Association (MIAA). More importantly, he was just one of two players - JJ Johnson as the other - who also received MIAA Scholar-Athlete Awards for their success both on the field and in the classroom.

The MIAA Scholar-Athlete Award is bestowed upon any athlete who has been named all-league and who has posted a cumulative grade point average of 3.5 or higher. With a grade point average (GPA) of 3.75, Campbell was an all-league selection with honourable mention.

“It was a good one for the team, not record wise, but it was good for us to achieve the success that we did together in the classroom,” said Campbell, who refused to take all of the credit. “We put in a lot of work over the summer and a couple of us were able to advance to be selected to All-Conference.

“It was a good experience and it was a blessing to have been chosen and selected as one of the honourees. It hasn’t always been easy when you don’t have the physical support like all of your teammates at the games. It may not have seemed worth it because you didn’t see it, but they were there supporting me nonetheless, so I really didn’t want to let them down.”

To compensate for the absence of his family when his teammates enjoyed the luxury of being there for their children, Campbell said he talked with his parents (Dwight and Yvonne Campbell) on a daiy basis and that was one of the key factors for him in keeping his head high because he knows that the reward will eventually come for his hard work.

On the field, Campbell, a six-foot, 298-pound offensive linesman, and Johnson started all 11 games for Lincoln University at right guard and centre respectively, and helped produce arguably the most prolific offensive attack of any Blue Tiger team in programme history.

Campbell and Johnson combined to block for 4,917 yards of total offence for the Blue Tigers, crushing the old single-season record of 3,734 that was set last season. The duo helped pave the way for 2,529 rushing yards, 2,388 passing yards and 42 offensive touchdowns.

In the process, the linesmen helped teammates Morris Henderson and Jacob Morris break multiple long-held single game and season records, and were responsible for Lincoln fielding a rushing attack that finished third in the MIAA and 24th in NCAA Division II with 229.9 yards per game.

Campbell had one solo tackle as the Blue Tigers finished the year with a .273 percentage from a 3-8 win-loss record with a 2-8 mark in conference play. They had a two-game winning streak, was 2-3 at home, 0-5 away and 1-0 on neutral ground.

“The season is over, but I wish it wasn’t over. This is my last one as a collegiate player, but I don’t have any regrets about it,” he said. “Every time I had, I stepped out on the field and I played. If I had the opportunity, I wouldn’t mind doing it all over again.”

Now that his collegiate career is done, Campbell is working towards completing his studies next month before he graduates in May.

“Until that time, I plan on working on getting my name out there and trying to get my foot in the door,” he said. “I want to eventually try out for a football league, whether it’s an arena league or even the Canadian league. I want to end up playing football somewhere after I graduate.”

Hopefully, he can continue to play the game that he has enjoyed playing so much at Lincoln University.