Jason Dean "J. D." Gibbs (February 21, 1969 – January 11, 2019) was an American professional stock car racing driver and co-owner of

Joe Gibbs Racing Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) is an American professional stock car racing organization owned and operated by former Washington Redskins (today the Washington Commanders) coach Joe Gibbs, which first started racing on the NASCAR circuit in 1991. His ...

. He also played college football at the

College of William & Mary The College of William & Mary (officially The College of William and Mary in Virginia, abbreviated as William & Mary, W&M) is a public research university in Williamsburg, Virginia. Founded in 1693 by letters patent issued by King William I ...

Early life and football career

J. D. Gibbs was born on February 21, 1969, near

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. At the time his father,

Joe Gibbs Joe Jackson Gibbs (born November 25, 1940) is an American auto racing team owner and former professional football coach. In football, he was head coach for the Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL) from 1981 to 1992, and ...

, was the assistant coach at the

University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8.1 ...

. His mother is the former Patricia Escobar. During Gibbs' childhood, he moved several times before settling in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

Once he graduated from

Oakton High School Oakton High School is a public high school in unincorporated Fairfax County, Virginia, in proximity to the town of Vienna, in the United States. It is part of Fairfax County Public Schools. Oakton operates on a block schedule five days a week, ...

, he attended the

Williamsburg, Virginia Williamsburg is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 15,425. Located on the Virginia Peninsula, Williamsburg is in the northern part of the Hampton Roads metropolitan area. It is ...

. While attending, he was the defensive back and

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

during the 1987–1990 seasons, as his father coached for the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

. He helped the school team to two

Division I Football Championship Subdivision The NCAA Division I Football Championship is an annual post-season college football game, played since 2006, used to determine a national champion of the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS). From 1978 to 2005, the game was kn ...

(formerly Division I-AA) playoff appearances; the team won ten games in his senior season.

Racing career

After school, he became employed with

, a team his father started in July 1991. The team, with only six employees, started racing with

Dale Jarrett Dale Arnold Jarrett (born November 26, 1956) is a former American race car driver and current commentator for NBC. He is best known for winning the Daytona 500 three times (in 1993, 1996, and 2000) and winning the NASCAR Winston Cup Series champi ...

as the driver in 1992. In 1993, Gibbs was a tire changer on the team and was part of the

1993 Daytona 500 The 1993 Daytona 500, the 35th running of the event, was held February 14 at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida as the first race of the 1993 NASCAR Winston Cup season. Dale Jarrett won the race. Summary Kyle Petty's No. 42 ...

winning team. In the mid-1990s, J. D. started racing in the

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and ...

Camping World East Series The ARCA Menards Series East (formerly Busch East Series, Busch North Series, Camping World East Series, and NASCAR K&N Pro Series East) is a regional stock car racing series owned and operated by the Automobile Racing Club of America (ARCA) and ...

, as well as late-model events in

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

. Afterward, he started racing in the

Craftsman Truck Series The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is a pickup truck racing series owned and operated by the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, and is the only series in NASCAR to race production pickup truck based stock cars. The series is one of th ...

and

Busch Series The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) is a stock car racing series organized by NASCAR. It is promoted as NASCAR's second-tier circuit to the organization's top level Cup Series. NXS events are frequently held as a support race on the day prior to a ...

. In 1998, Gibbs became president of his father's team. After being the president for six years, his father returned to the Redskins after a 12-year hiatus. In 2007, he was rejoined with his father, once he retired for the second time.

Personal life and death

J. D. Gibbs was a resident of

Davidson, North Carolina Davidson is a suburban town located in northern Mecklenburg and Iredell counties, North Carolina, United States, on the banks of Lake Norman. It is a suburb in the Charlotte metropolitan area. The population was 10,944 at the 2010 census, and ...

. He was married to his wife Melissa (née Miller), and had four sons, Joe Jackson, William Miller, Jason Dean II, and Zachary Taylor. Gibbs was a major contributor and former member of

Young Life Young Life is an evangelical Christian organization based in Colorado Springs, Colorado which focuses on young people in middle school, high school, and college. Week-long Summer camps are a major focus, and these have a definite evangelizing asp ...

, a non-denominational Christian organization for adolescents. In May 2015, it was announced that Gibbs was battling "conditions related to brain function". During the ensuing years, his public appearances and involvement in the team became less frequent as the symptoms slowly began to show. He died at his home on January 11, 2019. A memorial service was held at Davidson College's

John M. Belk Arena John M. Belk Arena is a 5,295-seat multi-purpose arena, located on the campus of Davidson College, in Davidson, North Carolina, United States. It is named for Davidson alumnus and benefactor John M. Belk (1920–2007), class of 1943. As the cente ...

on January 25, 2019, where he was eulogized by his wife Melissa, his

father A father is the male parent of a child. Besides the paternal bonds of a father to his children, the father may have a parental, legal, and social relationship with the child that carries with it certain rights and obligations. An adoptive fathe ...

, his brother Coy, and his best friends Dave Alpern and Moose Valliere.

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

( key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. ''Italics'' – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Busch Series

Craftsman Truck Series

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gibbs, J. D. 1969 births 2019 deaths NASCAR drivers NASCAR team owners People from Davidson, North Carolina Racing drivers from Los Angeles Racing drivers from North Carolina Players of American football from Los Angeles William & Mary Tribe football players Oakton High School alumni Joe Gibbs Racing drivers Neurological disease deaths in North Carolina