Football
Sep 13 (Sat)
7:45 pm MT
- Title:
- Slot Backs
- Phone:
- 719-333-3372
Jake Campbell is in his 14th season at Air Force and seventh as the slot backs coach. Campbell returned to his alma mater after four years at Claremont-Mudd-Scripps where he was offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach in 2011. He coached running backs his first three seasons.
Campbell has been instrumental in the development of running backs Jacobi Owens, who rushed for 1,000 or more yards in back-to-back seasons and finished his career with over 3,000 yards rushing, and Tim McVey, who finished among the school’s all-time bests in rushing and receiving yards per touch and kickoff return average. McVey became the first player in school history to have over 100 yards rushing and receiving in the same game which he did vs. New Mexico in 2014. In addition, he mentored Kadin Remsberg, who rushed for 1,000-plus yards in 2019 while being named offensive most valuable player in the Cheez-It Bowl. Remsberg finished his career ranked 16th in program history with 1,779 yards.
Campbell has been instrumental in the development of Brandon Lewis and Ben Waters. Lewis led the Falcons in receiving in 2022 with 30 catches for 600 yards and three touchdowns. His 30.0 yards per reception average set a school record. Lewis had five catches for a school-bowl-record 172 yards in the First Responder Bowl victory over Louisville. He had touchdown catches of 64 and 61 yards, the third and fourth most ever in a bowl game for a Falcon. Waters recorded 22 catches for 658 yards and five touchdowns in 2019. His 29.9 yards per reception was a school record prior to Lewis’ mark.
Campbell is a 1996 graduate of the Air Force Academy. His on-field accomplishments and highlights as a running back make him one of the best to ever play the position at the Academy. He captained the 1995 team that won one of the Academy’s three Western Athletic Conference (WAC) championships in its history. Campbell’s efforts land him in the top 10 in several areas of the Falcon record book. He is currently fifth all-time in yards per carry for a season, fifth all-time for a career. He is also seventh all-time for yards per reception for a season and fourth in career touchdown receptions. He put together back-to-back 1,000 plus all-purpose yards his junior and senior years as a running back, receiver and kick returner. Campbell was later named to the Colorado Springs Gazette Telegraph’s Air Force all-decade team of the 1990’s.
Prior to joining the CMS football staff, Campbell served 10 years as an officer in the Air Force, reaching the rank of major. Campbell amassed over 1,000 flying hours as a pilot in the T-37, T-1A, and C-9A airframes. He flew the first stateside C-9A aircraft to deploy overseas in support of military operations in Kosovo. Campbell finished his military career as a contract negotiator. He was responsible for leading negotiating teams with Fortune 500 companies in contracts worth well over $400 million to deploy the widely known and frequently used Global Positioning System (GPS).
Campbell spent one season at the Air Force Academy Prep School as an assistant football coach. His responsibilities were coaching the running backs and quarterbacks, as well as the offensive play-calling duties. While at the Prep School, he helped develop numerous eventual Falcon football stars such as Scott McKay, Qualario Brown, Nate Beard and Chris Jessup. Campbell was also a math instructor and taught calculus.
Campbell was also a Nike/SPARQ trainer and the lead running back coach for the Nike Football Training Camps held throughout the country. He has worked with some of the best athletes in the country, many who have gone on to professional and Division I careers.
Originally from North Highlands, a neighborhood in Sacramento, Calif., Campbell was a four-sport starter in high school. He lettered in football, basketball, baseball and track. Campbell was also an assistant coach for the two-time defending conference champion CMS Athena softball team. Campbell is married to the former Bonnie Anderson. The couple has a three-year-old daughter, Cora. He also has a son, Brayden.
