CHS job "a dream" for new Lady Dawgs coach

It seems Donald Campbell was born to coach basketball.

From his high school days in Louisiana he’s been helping develop players in the game he loves.

Campbell, a self-professed basketball junkie who lives in the gym, has been hired as the Crestview girls coach replacing Keith White who has taken over the Bulldog boys.

Campbell’s blend of experience and knowledge of local basketball made him a natural fit for the job.

He coached an AAU basketball program for six years with the Panhandle Lady Stars. And he has coached girls from every major high school in the area, including Crestview, Fort Walton, Navarre, Niceville and Paxton. He also coached the Eglin Air Force Base varsity team the last four years.

“It has always been a dream of mine to be a middle school or high school coach, and this opportunity came about so I came in and interviewed for it because I want to make a difference in kids lives,” he said.

Campbell believes what the players do on the court will help them in the outside world and is hoping to pass those lessons along to the players.

Crestview principal Ed Coleman knows a little something about coaching girls basketball as the longtime girls coach at Niceville, and he’s very happy to have Campbell on board.

“We are excited about Donald Campbell being our girls basketball coach,” he said. “We had a selection committee that selected and recommended to me that he be the new coach. He has support of parents and boosters.

“I think some of his strengths and assets are he has worked with AAU basketball so he knows what it is to be competitive. And he has contacts with college coaches to help the girls that have the skill to go on and play at the next level.”

Read more in the June 20 edition of the Crestview News Bulletin