Nunzio Campanile’s family-first, humble upbringing shaped his meticulous approach to coaching

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Fair Lawn, New Jersey, is a small, middle-class town 12 minutes from the George Washington bridge. The majority of houses in the area are Cape Cods, lined in rows. It’s where Nunzio Campanile and his four siblings grew up.

Campanile’s father, Mike, is the godfather of the family dubbed “The First Family of New Jersey Football.” He coached nearly everyone Campanile grew up with. There were struggles, but each member of their neighborhood helped foster an “extended family environment” his brother Vito, said.

There wasn’t a day where Campanile wasn’t playing outside. But he always made it home to sit at the dinner table with his entire family. Vito, though biased, said you couldn’t find a better upbringing than the Campaniles’.

“We had so many people try and help direct us that he was kind of destined to go the direction he went,” Vito said.

Campanile’s humble beginnings molded him into a rising star in college football coaching. He started coaching in his home state at 20 years old. He joined Syracuse as its tight ends coach in January, tasked to boost an under-utilized position group and solidify recruiting in New Jersey and New York. One of four heirs to Mike’s throne for “Jersey’s First Family of Football” is well on his way.

Mike never taught, despite coaching for the majority of his adult life at Bergen Catholic (N.J.). He was a mortgage salesman, taking an entrepreneurial path that afforded him family time. Campanile’s mother, Maura, was a legal secretary for 20 years before working in the dialysis unit of Hackensack University Medical Center for 30 years. She lived two miles down the street and helped raise all five children when the parents worked.

Maura’s specialty was her Sunday macaroni sauce. Campanile’s brother, Nick, remembered the dinners took 4-5 hours to prepare and were “to die for.” Growing up in a tight-knit environment taught Campanile how to approach work, family and — eventually — recruiting.

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Nick said Campanile played “as many sports as possible” growing up. During a state semifinal wrestling match in middle school, Campanile was hit in the eye. It swelled up so much that the skin underneath it split open. Coaches let him finish and Campanile won with four seconds left in overtime.

Campanile was the quarterback and a safety for his father at Paramus Catholic High School (N.J.). He played two years at Division-III Amherst College after graduating. There, he intended on becoming a lawyer. But following his sophomore year, his interest in law ended and he transferred to Montclair State to pursue a coaching career. Two years later, former Don Bosco Prep (N.J.) head coach Greg Toal offered Campanile the varsity offensive coordinator position.

“He’s the type of guy, could have been a lawyer or a doctor, but wanted to be a football coach and made a hell of a career out of it,” Nick said.

Brett Knief knew he wasn’t close to being Don Bosco’s starting quarterback. Knief topped out as an “average high school football player.” Campanile didn’t care. After class, Knief always went straight to the film room with Campanile to watch film. Campanile quizzed his players on each play. If someone couldn’t draw them out, they didn’t play.

Campanile was an “elite-level communicator” and related to his players better than any coach Knief had seen before. He took from Mike’s parenting style to be a rigorous yet caring coach. Being at Don Bosco, then eventually as the head coach of Bergen Catholic for eight years, just like his father, gave Campanile the experiences of coaching a wide range of players.

Campanile worked his way up from being a history and physical education teacher at Don Bosco to being the school’s Athletic Director. During his tenure as offensive coordinator, the team won six state championships and a national title in 2009. He finished with a 112-6 record across 10 seasons with the Ironmen.

In 2018, the running back’s coaching job at Rutgers opened up. Bergen Catholic didn’t renew Campanile’s contract. Under then-head coach Chris Ash, the Scarlet Knights wanted to be “Jersey-bred,” former tight end Ryan Cassidy said. Hiring Campanile gave Rutgers strong connections with one of the best high school programs in the country. Campanile had produced more Football Bowl Subdivision players than any other coach in New Jersey.

“Coach Nunz is bred to coach football players because he has a big heart,” Cassidy said. “He was trusted as someone who knew our locker room.”

Over the next year and a half, Campanile instituted three non-negotiables in the running back room. He demanded his unit give 100% effort to themselves, family and team. He ordered them to be tough and never make the same mistake twice.

Then, in 2019, Rutgers decided to fire Ash and offensive coordinator John McNulty after Rutgers’ 52-0 loss to Michigan in Week 4, which marked its 14th-straight conference loss. Campanile, who had moved to coaching the tight ends, was named interim head coach.

The program liked what Campanile did with a tight end room, which Cassidy called “the island of misfit toys.” The group had a walk-on long snapper, two walk-on fullback/tight ends and a converted basketball player. Campanile leveled them into a productive group that played to their strengths.

In 2019, Campanile finished 1-6 in seven games and 2-10 overall. Vito said Campanile was sleeping at the office six nights a week because he wanted to prepare the team so much.

“His investment in the program showed he didn’t want to be there for a one-off season,” Cassidy said. “He was there for the long haul. He did a great job of laying out the goal long term.”

In January, Campanile went down to the National Coaches Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina, to make connections. Nick said Campanile wasn’t sold on Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano’s offense after the hire of new offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarrocca.

Syracuse had always intrigued Campanile. The Orange had just seen the departure of offensive coordinator and tight ends coach Robert Anae. Campanile liked head coach Dino Babers’ “Ohana” approach and now-offensive coordinator Jason Beck’s emphasis on a collaborative offense, Vito said.

Having Campanile on staff gave SU the ability to have a Northern Jersey presence in the locker room. Vito said it’s rare for a school in New York City or Northern and Central New Jersey where Campanile doesn’t have a relationship with someone. He’s already begun reestablishing the four-hour circle.

After all, Campanile knows the “hard-nosed” area, Knief said, the Cape Cod houses and Sunday sauce.

“He left a profound effect on my life. He’s someone I trust unequivocally,” Knief said. “Syracuse hit a home run with this one.”