Camarillo’s Campbell Stands Out With Deeds

A guy just doesn’t set foot on the playground with a first name like Fahali and get away with it.

Fahali? Isn’t that sort of like a taco? Ha, ha, ha.

No, I think it’s a foreign sports car. Ha, ha, ha.

Alas, Fahali Akali Campbell was forced to explain his way through grade school. But try telling the school bully that Fahali Akali, translated in Swahili, means “Man of Great Dignity and Pride.”

“They used to call me Ferrari Fahali,” said Campbell, a senior tailback for Camarillo High. “All through elementary school. When I was younger, I swore to myself that I was going to change my name . . . when I turned 18.”

Even Campbell, who was born and raised in Los Angeles and moved to Ventura County when he was in eighth grade, never understood why he was given the name--especially since his older sister’s name is Kristine and his mother’s name is Margaret.

“All my other relatives have basic names,” Campbell said. “I don’t know how I got this one. My mother never told me why. She just liked the name, I guess.”

Perhaps she wanted her only son to stand out in a crowd. To be noticed.

Campbell, 5-foot-11, 175 pounds, has attracted plenty of attention by carrying, catching and, at times, deflecting the football.

On Friday night, Campbell rushed for a personal-record 253 yards and one touchdown in 31 carries in a 38-20 Marmonte League victory over Agoura. A part-time starter at free safety, Campbell also returned an interception 13 yards.

Throughout the season, Campbell has posted impressive numbers in Camarillo’s new wing T offense.

A week earlier, Campbell rushed for 175 yards and two touchdowns in a 29-10 win over Hueneme. He also had a 75-yard kickoff return among 330 all-purpose yards.

Two weeks ago, Campbell rushed for 251 yards and one touchdown in a 16-7 win over Rio Mesa.

He is on the field often. And on the spot even more.

“I like the game so much, I’d play anywhere,” Campbell said. “If I was big enough, I’d play defensive line. I don’t really mind being on the field so much.”

Campbell will turn 18 in January, but the first name will remain. “I kind of like it now,” he said.

Indeed, Campbell needs no introduction. Through four weeks, he is the area’s leading rusher with 746 yards in 97 carries, and Camarillo is 3-1.

“He’s probably our best defensive back, also,” Camarillo Coach Carl Thompson said. “We want to get him the ball as much as possible. I don’t know what we’d do without him.”

Campbell, a three-year starter who rushed for 1,013 yards last season, has rushed for more than 2,300 yards in his career. He is on recruiting lists at Stanford and California.

“There’s no one school I’m really thinking about,” Campbell said. “As far as . . . all the publicity, it doesn’t make that much of a difference to me. I just like to play the game.”