Sunshine in his pocket: Memory of lost ‘brother’ fuels Patriots’ Will Campbell

The phone started to ring as the band played Justin Timberlake’s ‘Can’t Stop the Feeling.’

Will Campbell sat on a white leather couch wearing a green pinstripe suit, surrounded by his closest family members. When he answered the phone, with the Patriots on the other line, his dream came true and those around him couldn’t believe it.

The shock wasn’t because Campbell was drafted No. 4 overall. It was the lyrics to the song that echoed from above.

“I got that sunshine in my pocket. Got that good soul in my feet.”

The surreal moment at the 2025 NFL Draft brought the family so much joy – and also served as a reminder of who wasn’t there.

When the 21-year-old arrived in the green room, his aunt, Lindsey Braddock, handed Campbell and his brother, Thomas, a photo of her son, Tarver Braddock, who passed away last year at the age of 16 in a fire.

Campbell, who loved Tarver like a brother, and Thomas each placed the photo inside their suit pockets, keeping their best friend close.

“And then right before Will’s phone rang from the Patriots, ‘Sunshine in my pocket’ was playing on the loudspeaker,” Lindsey Braddock said. “It’s really crazy – kind of like he was there with us.”

“It’s crazy just the way that God works,” Campbell added. “He sends you so many signs of the person that you lose.”

The loss of Tarver Braddock deeply impacted the community of Monroe, La., and devastated the Braddock and Campbell families.

A junior in high school, Tarver loved to make others laugh and relished every chance to root for his cousin. In his favorite “drip,” he was a fixture at Campbell’s LSU games. When Campbell was drafted and his dream was realized, Tarver was naturally on his mind. While Tarver’s spirit was there, his presence was missed.

“I think that he was with us every second, and we joked because he would have been living it up in the green room,” said Holly Campbell, Will‘s mother. “Like that is totally his vibe. The flashier, the better – life of the party. He would have been savoring every moment. We definitely felt his presence.”

The family aims to turn the tragedy into something meaningful through the Tarver Braddock Foundation. During a challenging and emotional year, Will Campbell has done everything he can to preserve his cousin’s memory – and to give back in his name.

Tarver Braddock was a shining light

It was hard not to smile around Tarver.

There were many layers to the charismatic teenager. He played football, and baseball and was on the student council at Neville High School, and he gave back, helping on church retreats. Tarver loved his family, and they adored him. He was a fierce protector of his sister, Stella.

For Campbell, calling Braddock his cousin would have downplayed their relationship.

“We were brothers,” Campbell said. “The only thing we didn’t share was a last name. We did everything together – me, him, and my brother. Our family is very close… That was one of my best friends since he was born.”

Sisters Lindsey Braddock and Holly Campbell lost their mother, Debbie, when their children were very young. That’s when they decided that the two families would help raise each other’s children – Will, Thomas, Tarver, and Stella.

The families live 5 minutes from each other in Monroe. The Campbells and Braddocks did everything together. A teacher, Lindsey taught all of them in fourth grade at Sallie Humble Elementary School in town. She’s the self-proclaimed disciplinarian. Holly is the softer one of the group.

“We just kind of rallied and raised each other’s kids,” Holly said.

As they grew older, Tarver and Will got closer.

Campbell thought Tarver was the funniest person on earth. They riled each other up, often getting into mischief, even in church.

“Will was this 6-foot-6 giant of a person that everybody thought was so mature and so grown up. But when he was with Tarver, he acted like a 12-year-old,” Lindsey said. “They just were so silly and so rowdy. Tarver was a character. That was his whole mission, to make people laugh and to make people smile.”

The families were a traveling pack, rarely missing an LSU game and the chance to see Campbell develop into the top offensive tackle in the nation, even on the road. They sat near the sidelines or in the stands wearing his No. 66 jersey. Tarver was his No. 1 fan. When Campbell committed to LSU, he was there in Baton Rouge to help him move into his first dorm.

“They’ve not only been supportive through football, but that’s just how we are with everyday life,” Campbell said. “It doesn’t have anything to do with football. That’s just a part of it. We’re just that tight of a family, and I have that good of people around me, which I’m very fortunate and blessed. It means everything.”

A prolonged year of mourning

Campbell entered his final season at LSU in pain. A 6-foot-6 offensive tackle, he was used to being hit, but this was different.

“It was probably the most difficult stretch of my life,” Campbell said.

On Feb. 3, 2023, his childhood friend, Luke Moses, took his own life. In the 15 days that followed, two of his high school teammates, David Jackson and Martavius Martin, each died. Once he thought he had a chance to breathe, the grief didn’t stop. On Oct. 16, 2023, Will’s grandfather, William L. “Billy” Husted III, died at the age of 71.

Three months later, Will Campbell got more devastating news.

On Jan. 5, 2024, around 4 a.m., a fire started and moved quickly through a mobile home where six teenagers slept. The group was there on a hunting trip in Jefferson County, Miss. While the other boys, including Thomas Campbell, survived, leaping out of the windows, Tarver died at the scene.

“I believe it was the pot belly stove on the patio, and I think the wind shifted, and it was all such in a hurry,” Lindsey said. “(Tarver) was the one that would handle all the plans … He was just very, very like that. He was in charge. The fact that he didn’t survive, was truly mind blowing to everyone that knew him.”

The loss was crushing for the family.

The tragedy happened four days after Campbell played in LSU’s bowl game against Wisconsin. After losing three friends and his grandfather, Campbell had one brother hospitalized and another gone.

The devastating loss created a hole for the projected first-round pick to carry through his final season at LSU.

“Obviously, it’s a family’s worst nightmare,” Holly Campbell said. “A student-athlete has a lot on their plate in a normal circumstance, so this was heavy. And (Will) really did channel all his emotions and just stayed focused. I really can’t say enough about his support system in Baton Rouge. He pressed on and stayed the course.”

Football became Campbell’s ultimate release.

“It was a long lead-up of things that just kept hitting me off the field,” Campbell said. “I just think that my outlet was football. That was a place where I could walk into the building, forget about everything that is going on in the world, and just go and focus on what I love to do.”

Tarver Braddock Foundation

Holly Campbell used to pick up her young sons from elementary school and take them to the local mall in Monroe. Campbell has memories of standing on the sidewalk outside, ringing a bell to help raise money for the Salvation Army around Christmas time. He recalls times he went with his church to give food to the homeless.

His family always preached giving back.

“It was instilled in us. It’s important to us to always serve. I think that’s what God has in mind for us,” Holly said. “There’s nothing more important to me for them to be a good human and not just a good athlete.”

As Campbell developed into an obvious NFL prospect, his plan was always to start a foundation. He and his aunt dreamed of starting a charity to help people in need.

After Tarver died, that plan was put into motion much quicker than anyone ever wanted. Lindsey and Brett Braddock started the Tarver Braddock Foundation and Will instantly became it’s most recognizable spokesman. They aim to bring joy to others through random acts of kindness.

They’ve donated money to a local children’s museum, a playground, a ministry, a youth baseball program, and more. They’ve handed out scholarships to students and helped families in need.

“Over these past two months, my aunt and uncle, while I was flying around the country and ended up in New England, they gave out like 10 college scholarships to kids around the Northeast Louisiana area,” Campbell said. “There’s no act that’s too big or too small.”

Along this journey, Campbell has put his face on Louisiana billboards. He’s run football camps in honor of Tarver and the foundation. Before the draft, he and Lindsey delivered a car to a teenager in a single-parent household. He called his aunt the next day to ask, ‘What are we doing next?’

For Campbell and his family, the outpouring of support for the Tarver Braddock Foundation has been uplifting. After the draft, donations from Patriots fans poured in.

“I feel really super blessed that Will has this platform to speak out about it,” Lindsey said. “And the fact that he chooses to talk about Tarver, I think, is healing for him, instead of burying it and just hiding the pain.

“I think it would be really easy for a young person to just mask it and pretend and not talk about it, but Will’s heart is like that. He’s very giving. He’s very loving, and he adored and cared so much about Tarver, I think he realizes and knows that he can make a real difference to carry his legacy on. It means the world to all of us in our family.”

A fitting reminder

Leading up to the NFL Draft, Campbell lived with Louisiana native Jack Bech. The TCU wide receiver lost his brother, Tiger, on New Year’s Day in the terrorist attack in New Orleans.

Campbell talked to his friend about grief and the little things that would give him joy. Every so often, Campbell was reminded of Tarver in some form.

“It’s just so crazy, because I lost my brother (Tarver) the year before, and then he had lost his throughout this process,” Campbell said. “I was able to kind of be there and walk him through what it’s going to be like, and he also shared stuff that he sees, or his family has seen that reminds them of the one that they lost.

“Seeing the smallest little thing that will remind you of them, it’s so cool. It’s like them being there.”

Little did Campbell know, it would happen on draft night.

When Lindsey arrived at the green room, she saw Will and Thomas in their similar pinstripe suits. With Will wearing green and Thomas blue, she envisioned Tarver donning one just like them but in a different color. He would’ve relished the moment and celebrated as Campbell’s phone rang with the Patriots on the other line.

Instead, his picture sat inside a pocket in their custom-made jackets. It’s the same wallet-sized photo that Lindsey gives to everyone who receives a gift in their son’s honor. Her husband, Brett, explains to the recipient who Tarver is and how he’s blessing them with this donation.

The Tarver Braddock Foundation’s logo is a rising sun, symbolizing Tarver’s light and his family’s goal to keep it shining in his memory. As the Patriots called Campbell on draft night and his green room phone rang, the family was in awe as meaningful lyrics echoed from above.

As Justin Timberlake flowed from the speakers, Campbell walked to the stage. In that moment that photo and Tarver Braddock was the “Sunshine in his pocket” making a great moment even more meaningful. Just like always.