Campbell has been anchor for Bearcats

The countless hours in the weight room, the marathon film study sessions were beginning to pay off when Garrett Campbell became a starting lineman at Cincinnati for the first time during the 2017 season.

Campbell knew he was eligible to apply for a rare sixth season of eligibility, but even though he played his high school football a mere seven minutes from Nippert Stadium, Campbell wasn’t sure whether the 2017 season would be his final one.

“I didn’t bring it up to my coaches, I didn’t know if it was a possibility,” Campbell said. “I remember the USF game last year going into that game week, my coach sat me down in his office, he said we were looking through your medical records and see that you have the opportunity to come back for a sixth year would I be interested it? Right away I wanted to jump out of my seat and say yes, yes I am interested, I don’t want your answer now, I want you to take a week talk to your family, talk to your friends see what is going to be the right decision for you.”

The answer was the same as it would have been during the mid-October conversation with Fickell. Yes, he wanted another year to play for his hometown team even

if it meant countless grandpa jokes from his younger teammates.

“Last year when things were a struggle and here’s a guy who believes in what you are doing and is a big part of what you are doing and wants to find a way to see if he can have a sixth year to continue to play this game,” Fickell said. “Even though he was playing, there were some things inside the locker room, the ability to represent the C-Paw for eternity, to be an example to a lot of guys that this is really, really important to some people here.”

Campbell is not just back on the team but a major reason why the Bearcats are off to a 4-0 start for the first time since 2012.

A former starting guard with the ability to play tackle, Campbell was asked to move to center and all he has done is anchor a line for the most improved rushing offense among 130 Football Bowl Subdivision programs.

“Going into the year, we just weren’t sure how the five guys were going to mix up,” Fickell said. “We knew we would probably be strongest if we could find a way to get him to center and let us be really strong up and middle and he will make everybody else around him better.”

Cincinnati averaged 90.5 rushing yards per game in the first four contests in 2017. Heading into Saturday’s American Athletic Conference showdown at UConn (3:30 p.m., CBS Sports Network) the Bearcats are up to 235.3 yards per game on the ground. The Bearcats are one of seven programs seeing an increase of more than 100 rushing yards per contest but none have improved statistically more than the Bearcats.

“I am ecstatic that I stuck through it, I couldn’t think where I would be,” Campbell said. “The crazy thing is I came in with three senior walk-ons all three of us linemen and we ended up starting at the end of the year.”

Campbell’s days as a walk-on ended in late July, 2017 when Fickell took a room packed with his teammates that Campbell was being put on scholarship for what was thought to be his final season.

Campbell would love to say that the most emotional conversation he has ever had with his mother was on the day he was put on scholarship. Unfortunately, there was another experience during his time as a member of the Cincinnati football program when he needed the support of his mother more than ever.

The night of Cincinnati’s 2013 win over Miami (Ohio) freshman offensive lineman Ben Flick died in a one-car accident. Even five years later, Campbell struggles to find the words to express how much he misses his fallen teammate and close friend.

“Ben and I were very close, he was like a brother to me,” Campbell said. “I was closer to him than any of the other linemen there and thinking about it now still makes me get emotional. I was there that night at Miami with him, I was probably one of the last people to see him and communicate with him that night, I have a text saved on my phone about what I am doing that night. For me it has been an unbelievable motivator, not letting it bring me down or sadden me.”

Campbell has a wrist band made by Flick’s parents with his friend’s uniform number in the locker.

“Every day I grab my helmet it is sitting there right next to it,” Campbell said. “It has been an unbelievable motivator because nobody wants to go out there on a Tuesday practice and (endure) the grind in full pads but that has helped me get through so much. Just seeing and knowing he is up there watching ... “He had a tremendous love for the game. He is one of those guys who every day comes with a smile no matter whether it was a Tuesday practice, Thursday it doesn’t matter. It has really helped me kind of push through the hard days.”