Slippery Rock University Athletics

Thomas “Tucker” Campion graduated from Slippery Rock State College in 1979 with a BS in  Health Sciences/Physical Education.  He was a four-year letterman for Coach Egli and also earned four All-America decathlete honors in track and field competition.  Campion was a soccer team co-captain as a senior and served one season as assistant coach under Coach Egli. Campion later played two seasons on the All-Navy soccer team.

He is now retired from 20 plus years as a Naval Special Warfare Officer (SEAL) in 2000.  He culminated his career as Commanding Officer, SEAL Team THREE, a 230 person operational command responsible for Naval Special Warfare operations in the U.S. Central Command’s area of operations.  He is a combat veteran who planned, conducted and led more than 60 Special Operations combat missions, and more than 40 exercises, in the western pacific and Middle East.  From Commander of a 16 man SEAL platoon through Commander of a Joint Special Operations Task Force of more than 500 U.S. and foreign country special operations troops, he planned, conducted and led from the micro to the macro.  As a leader and manager he has earned the respect of personnel, peers, and the senior leadership of the Special Operations Force. Tucker takes care of my people and their families ensuring that they had the training and support to perform their missions and be successful in both their military careers and in life. He prides himself in getting the job done and doing it right. Tucker credits much of his success throughout my career to the personnel that were assigned to him. He believed in them and they believed in him.

From 2000 until October 2010 he was a contractor employee of the U.S. Special Operations Command as a Project Manager and User Representative for Program Executive Office – Special Programs and then SOF Warrior Systems. As such he helped to manage all SOF unique Weapons, Ammunition, Weapon Accessories (optics, lasers, illuminators, etc.), Demolitions, and ground mobility for the entire Special Operations Community. Tucker was responsible for developing and briefing programs and their respective budgets to the SOF leadership as well as congress, their staffs and the Office of the Secretary of Defense.  He was the major impetus behind several SOCOM/big service and/or allied force joint program efforts to include shoulder-fired weapons, SOF Combat Assault Rifle (SCAR), Sniper Support Rifle, Precision Sniper Rifle, and enhanced small arms ammunition.  Tucker played a major role in the entire acquisition process from requirements generation, through program establishment and cradle to grave management of the final product(s). His Programs and projects had annual budgets that exceeded $200M. In addition, he was the principle advisor to many source selection boards and is therefore distinctly knowledgeable of this process, to include proposal evaluation.

In October 2010 Tucker started his own consulting company and presently advises and guide defense industry companies on USSOCOM and other big service requirements, projects and programs.

Before his retirement though, Tucker was awarded a Bronze Star for valor in combat with two Gold Star Awards, a Defense Meritorious Service Medal, three Meritorious Service Medals with two Gold Stars, an Air Medal, Navy Commendation Medals with three Gold Stars  and two with Combat V, a Navy Achievement Medal, and various unit and campaign awards.