Pro Football Hall of Fame running back Earl Campbell met with city officials Thursday for a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the brand new street named after Campbell.
Earl Campbell Parkway cost nearly $16.6 million to build and is a four-lane road connecting highway 155 to Loop 323 West. It also comes with a pair of bike lanes, medians and sidewalks. On top of that, it also comes with about 86,000 square miles of pavement and nine miles of curbs.
Campbell, also known as the “The Tyler Rose,” said he was honored by the gesture of having a street named after him.
“Nothing I accomplished in life is because of me,” Campbell said. “It’s because of we. I know a lot of people take credit Campbell, but there’s only one man who can take all the credit, that’s the Lord God Almighty.
Mayor Barbara Bass was at the scene and told the crowd she’s proud to be able to have a street named after the local legend.
“Earl Campbell exemplifies the best of who we are,” she said. “He puts God first. We have this parkway name in honor of a special person, born and raised in Tyler, Texas.”
Campbell played for John Tyler High School before attending University of Texas where he played for the Longhorns won the Heisman Trophy in 1977.
In 1978, he was drafted by the Houston Oilers, the team he played for the majority of his career. He spent two seasons playing for the New Orleans Saints and retired from football in 1986. He finished his career with 9,407 rushing yards.
“Cujo!” has been on the lips of John Tyler High School Football fans. The Lions are stomping their way through the Class 4A Division I playoffs. John Tyler has fought its way to through the season with a 12-1 record. This is only the school’s 12th time to be in the state quarter finals. Head coach Dereck Rush has led the team in an amazing record of 24 wins in the past 27 games.