Detroit Lions coach and Aggies alumnus Dan Campbell named NFC Coach of the Year
From biting kneecaps to becoming one of the best leaders in the National Football League within three seasons, Texas A&M alumnus Dan Campbell has received the biggest honor of his career.
On Thursday morning, the Detroit Lions head coach was named the NFC Coach of the Year by the 101 Awards. Each year since 1969, a Kansas City-based group formed “The Committee of 101” to hand out accolades to the NFL’s best of the best.
Congratulations, Coach!#101Awards pic.twitter.com/CkKR7bBoSB
— Detroit Lions (@Lions) January 25, 2024
Just over three years ago on Jan. 20, 2021, Campbell was hired to lead the league’s perennial loser in Detroit. The Lions regressed in his first season, going from 5-11 in 2020 to 3-13-1.
Detroit began the 2022 season 1-6 and Campbell found himself on the hot seat. Then the Lions proceeded to win 8 of their last 10 games, including in the season finale at Green Bay to keep their bitter rivals out of the postseason, finishing 9-8 overall.
Campbell rode that wave of momentum into this season, leading the Lions to a 12-5 record and the franchise’s first NFC North division title. Detroit hadn’t won their division in 30 years, dating back to an NFC Central championship in 1993.
With a 24-23 victory against the Los Angeles Rams in the Wild Card Round on Jan. 14, the Lions won their first playoff game in 32 years. Detroit followed that up with a 31-23 win versus the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to earn its first NFC Championship game berth since the 1991 season.
Campbell and the Lions play at the No. 1 seed San Francisco 49ers on Sunday at 5:30 p.m. CT with a trip to the Super Bowl on the line. If anyone can lead Detroit to its first NFL title since 1957, it’s certainly the man with an appetite for kneecaps.
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