BUIES CREEK, N.C. – Dale Steele, Campbell Athletics Hall of Fame member, former head coach and the architect of the rebirth of the Campbell football program, passed away on Sunday, July 19 after a after a courageous battle with cancer. He was 70 years old.

He is survived by his wife Pam of 52 years, daughters Meghan Penny and her husband, Ben of Coats; Kelsey Hearrell and her husband Tony of Brigham City, Utah, and his precious granddaughters, Emery Penny and Fenley Hearrell; his mother, Margaret Steele of Little River, S.C.; his brothers Kevin Steele and wife Linda of Edisto Island, S.C. and Jeffrey Steele of Auburn, Ala.; his nephew, Gordon Steele, his wife Melissa and their children of Birmingham, Ala.; his niece, Caroline Steele of Auburn, Ala.; and his beloved fur babies, Chess and Finnegan.

A funeral service will be held on Saturday, August 1 at 1:00 p.m. inside Butler Chapel on the Campbell University campus.

"Campbell has lost a giant," said Campbell Director of Athletics Hannah Bazemore. "Coach Steele's impact on the lives of countless student-athletes, the members of our greater community and so many others is immeasurable. He built the Campbell football program from scratch, forever transforming the landscape of our campus. He poured everything he had into the people around him, especially his players. Those that knew Coach Steele were fortunate to have him in their lives. Coach Steele was not only a great football coach, but a great man whose vision, unwavering drive and dedication will continue to inspire us every day. Our hearts and our prayers are with Mrs. Pam Steele and the entire Steele family."

Inducted into the Campbell Athletics Hall of Fame in 2025, Steele was named Campbell's first head coach of its modern era 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 championships in 2016 and 2017 while serving as Director of Football Administration at James Madison.

In November 2025, Steele was presented with the Orange Tie Award at the 2025 Orange Tie Gala after establishing the Steele Family endowed scholarship.

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.

Following retirement, Steele remained involved in college football as an advisory and team host for the Myrtle Beach Bowl and has remained present in Campbell Athletics in an unofficial capacity, connecting the entirety of the Camels' modern era of football while continuing to serve the program's coaches, student-athletes, administrators and alumni.

Statement from Campbell head coach Braxton Harris
Today is a hard day. We lost a great man in Campbell Hall of Famer Coach Dale Steele.

Coach Steele was a visionary who poured his heart into Campbell University. He loved his family, he loved his players, and he loved this place. That passion showed in starting the program and the way he served others.

I'm incredibly thankful for the investment Coach Steele made in my life. He believed in me, encouraged me, and helped shape me—not just as a coach, but as a husband, father, and man. His influence is something I'll carry with me for the rest of my life.

Coach Steele's legacy goes far beyond the field. He made people better. He cared deeply, led with integrity, and left Campbell better than he found it. He was a great coach, but an even better man. We are standing on his shoulders as we move this program that he loved forward, to fulfill his vision for Campbell Football.

I will miss him greatly.

Please join me in praying for Pam and the entire Steele family. We love you, and we're grieving with you while celebrating a life that made such a lasting difference.