Campbell University

Dale Steele Photo Gallery
Dale Steele Hall of Fame Introduction Video

The architect of the rebirth of the Campbell football program, Dale Steele was inducted into the Campbell Athletics Hall of Fame on Jan. 18, 2025.  Named head coach on June 15, 2006, of a program that had been dormant since 1950, Steele built the coaching staff and oversaw Campbell’s first six recruiting classes on the NCAA Division I level.  Under Steele’s guidance, the Camels produced 33 All-Pioneer Football League performers from 2008-12 and 192 PFL Academic Honor Roll members.  The team led the PFL – and ranked among the nation’s top 20 programs – in rushing for three-straight years from 2009-11.  In 2011, Campbell won five-consecutive games and finished with the program’s first overall (6-5) and conference (5-3) winning records.
 
The son of a high school coach and a 1976 graduate of the University of South Carolina, where he played on both the offensive and defensive line, Steele began a collegiate coaching career that lasted more than 45 years in 1977 as a graduate assistant at Ball State.  Among the many accomplishments his teams produced were five bowl games – including four during two stints on the staff at East Carolina, as well as back-to-back NCAA FCS National titles in 2016 and 2017 while serving as Director of Football Administration at James Madison.
 
A 35-year member of the American Football Coaches Association, Steele served as FCS representative on the NCAA Football Issues Committee, as well as a voting member on the FCS Coaches Poll and All-America selection committee.  Now retired from coaching, he remains involved in the game as an advisory and team host for the Myrtle Beach Bowl.