On this episode of the Foul Pole to Foul Pole podcast, we have the Interim Head Coach of the University of Mount Olive Trojans. Coach Luke is coming into his first season as Head Coach at Mount Olive with a wealth of knowledge and experience. Coach Luke Shamblin has been around the game for many years and has a history of getting the most out of his teams. Mount Olive looks to bounce back from an injury-ridden season and capture the DII National Championship!

Luke Shamblin was an assistant previously at Mount Olive from 2014-2017. He then went on to become the assistant coach and then head coach at Alderson Broddus University. Shamblin prior to his first stint at UMO, came from Glenville State College (W. Va.), where he spent two years as assistant softball coach under current Trojan head coach Mandy Sansbury. Although he assists in all aspects, Shamblin primarily serves as a defensive specialist for the Trojans. In 2010 while at Glenville State under a different head coach, Shamblin was in charge of hitting. During that season the team boasted the highest team batting average in school history. In 2014 Shamblin was the defensive specialist and that squad holds one of the highest fielding percentages in school history. Shamblin earned his undergraduate degree from Glenville State in history/political science with a minor in psychology. He received his master's in secondary social studies education from American Public University.

The University of Mount Olive, its board of trustees, administration, faculty, staff, and students are committed to integrating a chosen set of virtues into all aspects of the University. These virtues illustrate what the University considers appropriate and necessary for fostering the development of a healthy, safe, and caring university community. The University community includes the board, administration, faculty, staff, and students. Established by the Original Free Will Baptist Church, the University of Mount Olive calls for each person in this community to demonstrate the virtues modeled by Jesus Christ who taught that the demands of the gospel could be summarized in one word: love…love the Lord thy God with all thy heart…soul…mind and…strength love thy neighbor as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these (Mark 12:30-31). The New Testament word for love is agape which has been defined as sacrificial love and the desire for the highest well-being of other persons. This kind of love provides the conceptual framework for the discussion of the virtues that persons in this community are called to manifest.

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