Julius Campbell, the football player who inspired ‘Remember the Titans,’ has died at the age of 65

“Remember The Titans” is a beloved film that centers around the story of a real-life high school — T.C. Williams High School, located in Alexandria, Virginia — and a real-life football team forced to navigate life as an integrated team for the first time. Julius Campbell, one of those real-life players who served as inspiration for the 2000 film, has passed away at the age of 65.

According to the Washington Post, the former high school football player passed away due to organ failure. He is survived by his wife, daughter, three step-daughters, two step-sons and five grandchildren.

According to the real-life coach of the Titans team, Herman Boone, Campbell played a key role during the integration process.

“Julius took it upon himself to lead the team and rebuild race relations,” Boone said. “He talked to members of the team even up at Gettysburg about how we could come together. It was Julius who came up with the saying that our team is a team of one group of people with ‘one vision.’ And in order to win, we must have ‘one heartbeat.’”

According to his wife, that was just his way. “He was a very kind, compassionate human being,” his wife, Cathy Campbell, told the Post. “If you met him, you loved him.”

Wood Harris played Campbell in the film. Harris portrayed Campbell’s positive attitude and team mentality so capably that some of his quotes — such as, “Attitude reflects leadership, Captain” — remain among the most memorable.

You can see the scene in this clip from YouTube:

Fans of the film and fans of the sport alike took to Twitter to send their condolences and talk about their appreciation of Campbell.

“Rest in peace,” Twitter user @WTPSheehan wrote, alongside a recent photo of the actual Campbell.

And Alexandria City Public Schools, home of the real-life high school, posted a photo of Campbell in his football-playing days:

Twitter user @JordynJournals wrote, “This one really hurts. I gleaned one of the best pieces of advice from this movie: ‘attitude reflects leadership, captain.'”

Campbell’s legacy is one that will be remembered.