Texas Tech has been working furiously over the past half-decade to continually upgrade and expand upon their facilities and athletic infrastructure in order to keep up and stay competitive in the Big 12 arms race.
On Friday, the Red Raiders received a big boost to help push those efforts forward from alum and former football letter winner Cody Campbell. Campbell, who played on the offensive line for the Red Raiders from 2001 to 2004 before spending a season with the Indianapolis Colts, made a significant donation to help jump start two projects to renovate and improve both the south endzone at Jones AT&T Stadium and the Football Training Facility, where the Red Raiders spend their days preparing to compete.
Campbell’s funds will be used to help create architectural renderings and aid in major planning for both projects, two projects that are near and dear to Campbell as a former Red Raider who wants to push the football program forward with athletic director Kirby Hocutt and head coach Kliff Kingsbury.
“I’m not happy with where our football program is today. I know that most ex-players, alumni, and fans feel the same way. Kirby and Kliff are not happy with where our program is today, either. Rather than complaining and bellyaching, I am personally committed to do everything I can to right the ship and make the program what it can and should be. I’m willing to leverage my money and my time to make that happen.”
The former lineman, who co-founded Double Eagle Energy Holdings with fellow Red Raider and Canyon, Texas native John Sellers, believes Texas Tech football’s facilities will compete with anyone in the Big 12’s when he and his fellow donors put forth their monetary power to complete both the Football Training Facility and south endzone projects.
“Our facilities are good now, and soon they will be great. They’ll be as good as anyone else in the country’s,” said Campbell. “As far as the south endzone and the FTF go, we’re going to make them world class. I will be part of the group overseeing the design and planning, and will do everything in my power to make sure that nobody in our conference has better football facilities. Several other major donors are supportive of the project and share my passion and objectives. Tech has developed an incredible donor network.”
But for Campbell, making Red Raider football competitive again isn’t a simple matter of his dollars going towards infrastructure. It’s a matter of the Texas Tech community coming together with resources and passion to drive the program forward.
“Texas Tech football is capable of greatness. I can remember a time when our opponents feared Jones AT&T Stadium. It was an intimidating place, and we seldom lost. We need to bring that back,” he said. “We have a large, strong alumni base and great support from the Lubbock Community. We have a great brand and very strong donor base that is willing to step up. We also have a solid operating budget and good financial resources, despite what some seem to think.”
And Campbell is ready to ask his fellow Red Raiders to show their support, despite the results on the field in recent seasons. He’s doing so because he believes in the Texas Tech community.
“I would like to challenge every Red Raider to take the same approach I’m taking, and personally do everything you can do to help. Pick up the rope and pull it in the right direction. Bellyaching and complaining do no good. What does good is donating money to the Red Raider Club or Campaign for Fearless Champions, renewing season tickets, showing up, and being loud. Now is the time to be supportive, show up, and be loud.”
Campbell is someone that knows head coach Kliff Kingsbury better than most. He played on the offensive line that protected the signal caller in his closing seasons on the South Plains, and he believes that, despite the ups and downs of the last five years, Kingsbury is the right man for the job at Tech.
“Our program is far bigger than any one person, and despite our friendship, I wouldn’t say this unless I truly believed it: Kliff is our man,” said Campbell. “He knows the results are not acceptable, and he knows that Texas Tech deserves better than we’ve gotten the last couple of years. He made some critical mistakes early in his tenure, and we’ve been paying for those mistakes - He will openly admit those mistakes. I am confident, however, that he is on the right track now. He is still the same brilliant and talented guy that we hired five years ago, and with the experience he’s gained, he gives us a better chance of success than anyone we could have replaced him with. That’s what Kirby saw, and that’s why he retained him.”
“He is one of us, and he cares more about this program than anybody. As fellow Red Raiders, we should all want Kliff to be successful. Despite our frustrations, we must support him and our players. Buy tickets, show up, and be loud. Publicly support the program and be positive. Those things make a difference. I can assure everyone that Kliff and the staff are doing the right things to get things right, and they are headed in the right direction.”
