Small school, larger opportunities

An inside perspective on a historic Campbell University event

By Kyle Smith

Tim Tebow, The Rolling Stones, Garth Brooks and The Campbell Fighting Camels. This odd bunch have all set foot in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium — better known as “The Swamp.” 

Here’s another fun fact: 88,863 fans watched the Camels live on a hot and sticky Saturday in Florida this past weekend. To put it in perspective, you would have to stack around 17 to 18 Barker Lane Stadiums to get the feeling our student-athletes got.

I had the incredible pleasure of traveling with the team for this historic match. My experience started early Friday morning when we boarded our buses for the airport. It would be an understatement to say how pumped and excited the players were. Once we touched down in Gainesville — after a pleasantly smooth plane ride — we headed straight to the field for a walk-through. 

As we left, we noticed a lot of blue and red flashing lights around our buses and took no time to notice that we were getting a police escort. Not just for a few miles, but from the airport all the way to the stadium. I don’t think I had ever gotten somewhere faster in my life, because before I knew it we were on campus. Security then ushered us in the direction of the away tunnel. 

At this moment, phones and larger-than-life smiles began to come from everyone. The stadium just seemed to grow and grow the more we looked at it as the field stayed the same. Players were taking photos, FaceTiming loved ones, or simply taking the moment in. 

What felt like two minutes was actually 20 minutes, and before we knew it, we were heading for the hotel. There, everyone was given the chance to check in and find sleeping assignments. The team dinner consisted of food scaling from all over on the food pyramid. Afterward, the team departed for chapel, which was followed up with a late-night dessert. I was in bed and fast asleep by 9 p.m. sharp. 

The morning moved without beat, and before long it was lunchtime, which started with a blessing from Coach Harris’s father. Lunch was quiet with no conversations besides the clacking of forks and knives. The mood had shifted, and it was game time now. It was then time to depart from the hotel and dive straight into the swamp. 

There was no mistaking “Gator Country” as we were welcomed by chomp motions by everyone — even a little girl on her dad’s shoulders. The atmosphere felt unreal walking through the tunnel compared to the day before. People began to fill up the empty seats in orange and blue with some Camel fans sprinkled in.

At the opening kickoff, the band started playing the Jaws theme, and immediately the tone changed. Fans started doing their famous “Gator Chomps” and from here until the final whistle, the environment was unmatched.

Campbell started off strong with a long pass completion that immediately silenced the crowd. Against all odds, they drove down the field and were able to scratch 3 points across the board. That may not seem like a lot, but for the first time playing against an SEC school, scoring right away creates a statement and shows that you mean business. 

The Fighting Camels kept it close for the first quarter, only giving up 10 points. However, after that, they gave up back-to-back punt return touchdowns, which, according to the Gator historians, had not happened in nearly 30 years. I was in the opposite end zones for those returns, and it was absolute chaos. I almost could feel the ground moving, or maybe it was because my ears were ringing due to the deafening sounds of fireworks. From there on, Campbell struggled while Florida just began to chomp away at the score.  

It almost didn’t feel like college football or even a sporting event after that. It truly felt like something more than a game. Especially before the fourth quarter when the lights went out and “I Won’t Back Down” started playing. The crowd of 88,000-plus singing in complete unison will forever be engraved into my mind. Even just writing about it right now is giving me goosebumps. 

Isn’t that what it’s all about? 

Winning would have been nice and would have been up there in one of the greatest upsets in maybe sports history. However, I believe we won by going. I was stopped multiple times by Florida fans asking about our school. I saw Florida students engaging in photos with our mascot, Gaylord. I guarantee people sat during halftime googling about the university in the stadium and at home.

Playing these types of games helps expand our name out to parts that seemed unreachable. Also, everyone who attended this game, from the players to the student managers, will certainly remember it. Not just for a few days or weeks but for years and years to come. 

So on the bus ride back home in the early morning, I thought to myself how I would describe this whole trip. First, I am grateful for the opportunity that I was given to travel and to witness the behind-the-scenes. A lot of amazing people don’t get enough credit for what they do to make sure hotels are booked, buses leave at the right time, equipment is checked, food is prepared, and the list goes on. Did I mention that they have to keep track of around 150-plus people as well? 

Second, where else can you go from a university that has no traffic lights to 88,000 people cheering? If you can find another place, call me. This game helped show incoming student-athletes that you can get a strong education and play in large environments. Other teams like basketball, baseball, and softball are getting similar opportunities, which is even more amazing for our athletic program. 

Lastly, this was an experience like no other that I personally have ever witnessed. I’ve been to multiple concerts and sporting events, but nothing can compare. One of my hometown friends said over text that it was “once in a lifetime”. In my opinion, there aren’t enough words in the dictionary or numbers on a scoreboard to describe the feeling I had during this trip. However, if you close your eyes real tight and listen to Tom Petty at full volume, you might just get a small taste of it.

Kyle Smith is a content creator and video producer for Campbell University’s Communications & Marketing department