It’s a Lone Star State-sized mouthful, but Texas football will officially step onto a newly-named field if/when the 2020 season kicks off.
Myriad Texas student-athletes, including football players, requested last month that several issues be addressed. Monday, UT confirmed that it had initiated several changes on the athletic and academic side of the university, many of which addressed the concerns of the student-athletes. One that didn’t? The “Eyes of Texas” will remain the school song.
The school did note, though, that, "[a]t the suggestion of the Jamail family, [the university would] rename Joe Jamail Field at the stadium in honor of Texas’ two great Heisman Trophy winners, Earl Campbell and Ricky Williams, two Longhorn legends with a record of commitment to the university.”
Tuesday, the university confirmed that, moving forward, the home for Texas football will officially be known as Campbell-Williams Field at Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium.
At the request of the Jamail family, Joe Jamail Field will now be named in honor of our Longhorn Legends and Heisman Trophy winners Earl Campbell & Ricky Williams. Going forward, it's officially Campbell-Williams Field.
— Chris Del Conte (@_delconte) July 14, 2020
🗞 https://t.co/LRPWihOIQ9 pic.twitter.com/jGJWl4rypD
In 1977, Campbell became the first-ever Texas football player to win the Heisman Trophy. Two decades later, Williams became the second in 1998. Those two running backs remain the only Longhorns to ever claim the most prestigious individual trophy in the sport.
“This is such a great tribute and so well deserved,” former Texas and current North Carolina head coach Mack Brown told the Austin American-Statesman via email. “And what an awesome tribute it is to Joe Jamail, and an amazing gesture by his family that they wanted to do this for Ricky and Earl. But that’s who the Jamail family is. Joe loved Ricky, Earl and all of the players.
“This is such a fitting way for the family to honor Joe and to say thank you to all of the players and the university they care for so deeply.”
Joe Jamail, a renowned attorney, passed away in 2015. His name has been on the field since 1997, shortly after he gave yet another multi-million gift to the football program. The first game played on Joe Jamail Field, Texas lost to UCLA 66-3. Jamail’s response?
“How much f***ing money does it take to get my name off the field?”
