Rick Campbell to be hired as the RedBlacks first head coach today

Yesterday's news that Rick Campbell would be named the team's first head coach spread like an oil fire. 

While I typically prefer to wait until an official announcement for a hiring or signing, the article below (or at least the portion I copied) does a great job of detailing Campbell's background so I thought it would be the best one to share with and for people who may not be familiar with our new boss.  Credit to Vicki Hall at the Calgary Herald.

...The fit appears perfect. Campbell is a level sort and not one to get caught up in the elation of a win or the devastation of a loss. Should the losses pile up in Ottawa — and they might in the beginning — Campbell’s even keel personality will prove invaluable.

Much like his dad, Rick Campbell’s calling card is poise under pressure and dedication to creating a professional working environment that doesn’t resemble an afternoon soap opera (see: Winnipeg and Edmonton).

“A very steady young man,” Stamps head coach/general manager John Hufnagel said back in October when asked to describe his defensive co-ordinator. “Doesn’t get overwhelmed or overly excited or overly upset. He just coaches and does an excellent job.”

Rick grew up underfoot in football locker-rooms as his dad lorded over the Edmonton Eskimos for 26 years — first as head coach, then as general manager and later president — in an era marked by sheer dominance for the green and gold.

For the uninitiated, Hugh Campbell belongs on the CFL version of Mount Rushmore alongside the likes of the late Ron Lancaster and Bobby Ackles, the retired Don Matthews, and the active Wally Buono.

So great was his influence back in his time as president of the Eskimos, executives from other teams begrudgingly referred to the CFL as the Campbell Football League.

...

A school teacher by trade, Rick Campbell broke into the CFL coaching ranks in 1999 as an assistant in charge of the linebackers and special teams for the Eskimos.

Not surprisingly, Campbell dealt with allegations of nepotism — a fact of life for any second-generation coach working in the same office as his father. (Baby Huey, he was called behind his back).

By leaving Edmonton, by striking out on his own, Campbell erased all such talk. Under his tutelage in 2013, the Stamps surrendered 413 points, making them the stingiest defence in the eight-team circuit behind only the Grey Cup champion Saskatchewan Roughriders (398).

“Rick is all about having fun and getting the job done at the same time,” Stamps middle linebacker Juwan Simpson said back in October when talk of Campbell moving on began to heat up. “I don’t know anyone on defence who has ever said anything bad about him.

“I think he’ll be a great head coach.”

Never mind his bloodlines, I always like to hear about a background in teaching.

Campbell wasn't one of the handful of names being frequently thrown around as possibilities earlier in the year, but the more I read about him, the more I like the appointment. He mixes relative youth with 15 years of experience in the league in various capacities involving all three aspects of the game.  Overall, it sounds like a pretty good blend.