Football coach signs contract extension through 2020

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The University of Toledo and Head Football Coach Matt Campbell have agreed to a contract extension that will run through the 2020 football season, UT Vice President and Athletic Director Mike O’Brien announced today.

Campbell, in his third full season with the Rockets, has a 25-13 record as head coach. He has led the Rockets to an 8-4 record this season, including a 7-1 mark in Mid-American Conference games. The Rockets earned a share of the MAC West Division title and will play Arkansas State in the GoDaddy Bowl Sunday, Jan. 4. Previously, Campbell led UT to a 42-41 victory over Air Force in the 2011 Military Bowl in his first game as head coach. In 2012, the Rockets finished 9-4, were ranked in the Top 25 at one point in the season, and participated in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl.

“Matt Campbell is a proven winner and one of the finest head coaches in all of college football,” O’Brien said. “Just as importantly, Matt is a great mentor to the young men in our football program. He is dedicated to ensuring that our student-athletes develop on the football field, in the classroom and in life. We are pleased to make this commitment to Matt and look forward to many more years with him as our head football coach.”

“I’m honored to be the head football coach at this great university and grateful for the support of Interim President Nagi Naganathan, Mike O’Brien, and the entire UT administrative staff,” Campbell said. “I’m also very thankful for our players, assistant coaches and football support staff. Their effort and enthusiasm are the real reason behind the great success we’ve had since I’ve been involved with the UT football program.”

Campbell served three seasons as UT’s offensive coordinator under former head coach Tim Beckman from 2009 to 2011. He was named head coach for the Rockets Dec. 12, 2011, becoming the 26th head football coach in school history and the youngest head coach in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision at the time by more than three years.

A native of Massillon, Ohio, Campbell played his college football at Mount Union, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in history in 2002. Campbell earned NCAA Division III All-America honors at defensive end in 2001 and 2002, leading the Purple Raiders to national championships in 2000, 2001 and 2002.

He returned to coach at Mount Union under legendary head coach Larry Kehres in 2005 and 2006, helping guide the Purple Raiders to two more national titles. Campbell then coached at Bowling Green for two seasons as the offensive line and run-game coordinator before joining the UT staff in 2009.

Campbell and his wife, Erica, have two girls, Katelyn (6) and Isabella (5), and a son, Rudy (1).