BUIES CREEK, N.C. – Legendary Air Force Academy football coach Fisher DeBerry will be the featured speaker when Campbell University hosts A Day for the Camels – Touchdown 2008. In anticipation of the return of varsity football to the Campbell University campus in the fall of ‘08, a full day of activities is planned for Saturday, June 2, 2007.

NFL players Mike Minter (Carolina Panthers) and Greg Warren (Pittsburgh Steelers) will be among the celebrity guests at the event.

Minter is the Panthers' all-time leading tackler with 861 over his 11 year career with the team. He was drafted by Carolina in the second round (56^th overall) of the 1997 NFL Draft out of the University of Nebraska where he won two national championships (1994, 95), was named a first team All-American and named to three All Big-Eight teams.

The Lawton, Okla. native has strong ties to the community donating $160,000 to the Judy Rose Foundation to benefit the University YMCA. He partnered with three other Panthers players to open Ruckus House Learning Center, a 15,000 square-foot state-of-the-art child development facility in Harrisburg, N.C. and was named the Panthers 2005 Walter Payton Man of the Year for his community efforts.

Warren was a member of the Steelers' Super Bowl Championship team in 2005 playing in all 20 games. He was the key part of a special teams unit that did not have a muffed punt or snap the entire season.

Warren walked on at North Carolina in 2000, but earned a scholarship in 2003 and was named team co-captain. Just like his first season with the Steelers, Warren didn't have a bad snap his entire senior season with the Tar Heels.

The schedule begins with a 10:00 a.m. golf outing at Keith Hills Country Club, where participating teams will be matched with a Fighting Camel coach, staff member or celebrity guest.

At 5:00 p.m., a reception and silent auction of sports memorabilia and other special items will be held on campus at Marshbanks Dining Hall.

A steak and shrimp dinner follows at 6:00 p.m., with Coach DeBerry serving as the keynote speaker.

Ticket prices start at $50.00 for the dinner only, and also include discounted combination rates for golf, the purchase of a full table of eight places for dinner, as well as corporate sponsorship packages. To purchase tickets or for more information, contact the Campbell University Department of Athletics at (910) 893-1328 or visit the Campbell athletics web site at www.GoCamels.com.

After more than a five-decade absence, Campbell University announced on April 7, 2006 that it will again field a varsity football program in 2008. The Fighting Camels will compete on the NCAA Division I-AA (non-scholarship) level. On June 15, 2006, Dale Steele, a veteran of more than 25 years in the collegiate coaching ranks, was introduced as Campbell University's football coach.

In addition to 17 students, who are already on campus training with Coach Steele and the football staff, the Fighting Camels have received commitments from 95 student-athletes who will join the program in the fall of 2007.

Campbell's first game – vs. Birmingham Southern – will be played Aug. 30, 2008 at the Campbell University football complex, located on-campus adjacent to US Highway 421. Groundbreaking ceremonies for the stadium in front of an estimated crowd of more than 1,000 individuals were held on March 15.

Fisher DeBerry
U.S.Air Force Academy
Head Football Coach, 1984-2006 (23 seasons)

Fisher DeBerry served as head coach at the Air Force Academy for a brilliant 23-year career, which concluded, with his retirement on December 15, 2006. His mark on the program, the Academy and college football is unmistakable. The 68-year-old South Carolina native and his Air Force program served as the epitome of what is right and good in collegiate athletics.

His record stands alone at Air Force and stands up against the best in the nation. He led 17 of his 23 teams to winning records and 12 captured bowl bids, posting a 6-6 record in those games. His career record of 169-109-1 is the best in school history in terms of games won and winning percentage.

When one looks at DeBerry's body of work, it's hard to believe he did it all while coaching at a service academy that plays in a very competitive conference.

He coached the Falcons to three conference championships. The team won a share of the Western Athletic Conference championship in 1985 and again in 1995.

In 1998, DeBerry guided the team to its first outright title with the WAC Mountain Division championship and a win over Brigham Young in the title game in Las Vegas. He was named WAC Coach of the Year for the third time in his career. The 1998 team's 12-1 record completed the first back-to-back 10-win seasons in school history following a 10-3 campaign the previous year. The 1998 squad finished the season ranked 10th nationally.

DeBerry's teams ranked among the country's top 30 in total wins over the last 10 years with a 71-49 mark. Only traditional national powers like Nebraska, Florida State, Tennessee, Kansas State, Michigan, Florida, Oklahoma, Miami, Oregon and Texas can brag about winning more than Air Force.

In DeBerry's tenure, Air Force defeated Notre Dame three times. His Falcons dominated the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy series with archrivals Army and Navy. Air Force won the trophy 14 times and shared it once in the DeBerry era. He compiled a remarkable 35-11 record against the Black Knights and Midshipmen and is the winningest coach in service academy history.

DeBerry served as an assistant at Air Force from 1980-83 before the Academy promoted him to head coach in 1984 succeeding Ken Hatfield. His success was immediate as Air Force started the 1985 season 10-0 and flirted with a national championship game appearance before finishing 12-1 with a 24-16 beating of Texas in the Bluebonnet Bowl to earn DeBerry the national coach of the year award.

Fourteen Air Force teams have won at least eight games in a year, and DeBerry coached 11 of them. DeBerry's first team in 1984 went 8-4 and beat Bruce Smith and Virginia Tech in the Independence Bowl 23-7.

A year later, the Falcons averaged 36.2 points and led the NCAA in victories with 12. They were 10-0 and ranked No. 4 nationally until a 28-21 loss at BYU. In the final Associated Press poll, the Falcons ranked eighth. The team also ranked fifth in the final UPI poll. DeBerry's 20 wins after two years still ranks as the seventh-most in NCAA Division I history. It's the same number that Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops posted while leading the Sooners to a national title in his second year.

The 1985 team featured quarterback Bart Weiss, All-American free safety Scott Thomas, linebacker Terry Maki and a sophomore defensive tackle named Chad Hennings. Maki was an All-American in 1986, and Hennings won the Outland Trophy in 1987.

After flying the A-10 tank buster on escort missions in the Persian Gulf, Hennings played for the NFL's Dallas Cowboys and won three Super Bowl rings. He became the first former DeBerry player selected to the College Football Hall of Fame this past summer. He was inducted in December 2006.

In 1989, led by Dee Dowis, who rushed for 3612 yards in his career, formerly an NCAA record for quarterbacks, the Falcons scored 52, 45, 48, 43, 46, and 35 points in a 6-0 start to the season and finished with their first of four consecutive trips to the Liberty Bowl. Dowis was a Heisman Trophy finalist.

Air Force notched one of its most cherished victories in school history at the 1990 Liberty Bowl. The Falcons were 6-5 when they arrived in Memphis, Tenn., and still smarting from a 54-7 loss to BYU in early November. The bowl opponent was heavily favored Ohio State.

Air Force beat the tradition-rich Buckeyes, 23-11. Late in the fourth quarter, the Falcons scored 10 points in a 6-second span to secure the win. Carlton McDonald, an All-American cornerback in 1992, scored on a 40-yard interception return to clinch it. McDonald, Thomas and Hennings are three of the five consensus All-Americans in AFA history.

In 1995, quarterback Beau Morgan became only the eighth player in NCAA history to rush and pass for 1000 yards in the same season. In 1996, Morgan did it again to become the first player in NCAA history to accomplish this feat twice. Weiss and Dowis, along with Keith Boyea (2001) and Chance Harridge (2002), also accomplished it for one season apiece.

DeBerry's players have also been equally successful off the field. Thomas gained national attention during the Gulf War when his plane went down over enemy territory. Thomas used his military and football training to get to safety and was rescued by the Air Force. The former All-American player credited the lessons he learned from the gridiron playing for DeBerry for helping him survive.

Col. Mike Chandler, a 1986 graduate, was the commander of the Thunderbirds at Nellis Air Force Base in Las Vegas, Nev.. Chandler also credited his days a Falcon football player for helping him reach his lofty position.

DeBerry became one of the most respected coaches in the game for his efforts off the field as well. In 1996, DeBerry served as president of the powerful and prestigious American Football Coaches Association, a 10,000-member organization headquartered in Waco, Texas, which was founded in 1922 by Amos Alonzo Stagg and John W. Heisman, among others.

Coach DeBerry has also served as chairman of the AFCA ethics committee. He was honored by the Independence Bowl as a member of its Hall of Fame. In 2005, DeBerry was honored with induction into the Colorado Springs Sports Hall of Fame.

DeBerry has received other impressive awards for his efforts on and off the field during his career. He received the State Farm Coach of Distinction award in 2001, joining coaches like Phillip Fulmer of Tennessee and Tyrone Willingham of Washington as recipients. He was also inducted into the South Carolina Sports Hall of Fame. DeBerry also received an honorary doctorate of humanities from Wofford during its graduation ceremony in 2003.

DeBerry graduated in 1960 from Wofford College in Spartanburg, S.C., where he lettered in football and baseball. DeBerry played second base and shortstop in baseball and flanker, defensive back and linebacker in football. He is a member of the Wofford Hall of Fame.

After six years of coaching and teaching in the South Carolina high school ranks, DeBerry returned to Wofford, where he stayed two years as an assistant when Wofford won 21 consecutive games and was ranked No. 1 in the NAIA. Wofford played Texas A&I for the national small college championship.

However, it was during a nine-year stop at Appalachian State in Boone, N.C., where his work with the wishbone began to blossom. Three times (1975, 1978, 1979) Appalachian State was ranked in the top 10 nationally in rushing, total offense or scoring under DeBerry. In 1974, the team ranked sixth nationally in pass defense when he was defensive coordinator.

The coach grew up in rural Cheraw, S.C., (population 5,505); where ball fields seemingly out-number everything but the surrounding watermelon and cotton fields. It was there that DeBerry discovered sports. In high school, DeBerry was a four-sport letter winner. He lettered five times in baseball, three each in football and basketball and twice in track. He was an all-state selection in baseball and football and played in the all-state football game.

DeBerry was born June 9, 1938. His wife, LuAnn, grew up just around the corner from the DeBerry home. They have a son (Joe) and daughter (Michelle) and five grandchildren, Joseph (13), Jessica (11), Andrew (8), Alanna (6) and Christian (3).

DeBerry and his wife are active in church, charity and community affairs. The coach also gives motivational speeches to corporate groups and his volunteer work includes the Ronald McDonald House and the American Cancer Society.

DeBerry has been active in the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and was inducted into the organization's Hall of Champions in 2005. He and LuAnn have assisted fund-raising efforts for Easter Seals, the March of Dimes, the Salvation Army and the American Heart Association. He was also the 2000 and 2002 chairperson for the citywide Relay for Life sponsored by the American Cancer Society. He also served as the local chairman for the ALS walk in Colorado Springs. The couple is also very active locally in their church, Sunrise United Methodist. Recently, DeBerry, his son and son-in-law were featured speakers at a men's retreat.

The DeBerrys started the Fisher DeBerry Foundation in 2004. The foundation exists to provide children of single parent homes life changing opportunities they would not otherwise have. The foundation pays to send children to sports camps and other activities. It is a passion that DeBerry supports with more than just his name. The coach and LuAnn are deeply involved in the day-to-day activities.