By Sunday 
Superstitions, nerves, and a bathroom break — the hilarious rituals behind Dan Campbell’s biggest fan
When the Detroit Lions take the field, head coach Dan Campbell isn’t the only one sweating it out. His wife, Holly Campbell, might just be the team’s most anxious supporter — and she’s got the quirkiest ways of coping.
“I’m not calm,” Holly admits. After more than two decades by Dan’s side, she’s learned to lean on a few unusual game-day superstitions — some that are downright hilarious.
Pregame Kisses and Bathroom Magic
Every home game begins with a ritual that’s become sacred: Holly heads to the field an hour before kickoff for her and Dan’s traditional pregame kiss.
If she can’t make it to the stadium, the couple FaceTimes to make sure the moment still happens. “I mean, that has to be done,” Holly told PEOPLE in an exclusive interview.
But her routine doesn’t end there. When things start going sideways during a game, Holly admits she’s sent to the bathroom — literally.
“If things are not going our way, I get sent to the bathroom,” she said, laughing. Inside the suite’s restroom, she hides out, glued to the ESPN Gamecast feed, waiting for the cheers that tell her it’s safe to come back out.
“I can’t argue with it because it works,” she jokes — and apparently, her friends and family agree.
Wardrobe Curses and Boiled Bracelets
Superstitions run deep in Holly’s playbook. If the Lions lose, the outfit she wore goes “on ice” — meaning it’s benched indefinitely. “It’s not being worn any time soon,” she says.
And it doesn’t stop there. Back in the mid-2000s, when Dan was still playing for the Lions, Holly wore a bracelet with his jersey number, 89. Unfortunately, the team was, as she put it, “losing and losing and losing.”
Instead of tossing it, she decided to… boil it.
“It’s crazy! It’s crazy to talk about it!” Holly laughed, adding that only other NFL wives might understand that level of superstition.
The wild part? “I think we won the next game after that,” she revealed.
The Phrase That Might’ve Been a Curse
For years, Holly’s signature send-off before every game was a simple inside joke from their first date — “Do a good job.”
But after the Lions’ rocky 2021 season, she accidentally forgot to say it one week… and that’s when they finally won.
“The day we won our first game, I forgot to say it – for the first time ever,” she said. “And it’s worked out for him, so maybe it was me. The whole time, it was me saying, ‘Do a good job.’”
Love, Luck, and a Lions’ Roar
Today, Dan and Holly are still going strong — 25 years married and still navigating the highs and lows of football life together.
The Lions, now off to a strong 4–2 start, might have talent, coaching, and grit — but if you ask Holly, maybe a little bathroom magic doesn’t hurt either.