Dr. Carroll B. Land, “coach” to most that have known him during his 48 years of service to Pasadena College/Point Loma Nazarene University, is retiring as Director of Athletics, effective on June 15. The transition to retirement will be a challenging one for both Land and the university, for the two have been synonymous for six decades.

In 1953, Carroll Land enrolled as a freshman at Pasadena College. A year and a half later he married his sweetheart, Barbara, a fellow student. Trying to make ends meet, Land left school and went to work. In 1957 he joined the Marines. After a two-year stint in the Corps, he returned to Pasadena College. This time he stayed for good.

An outstanding baseball player who was a two-time Pasadena team MVP, Land played for three years, participating in his last season as a player as head coach.

This began his career in athletics. Land earned his Master’s degree from USC in 1962 and became a full-time member of the Pasadena athletic staff. Over the next few years he coached baseball, freshman basketball and cross country. He also served as the school’s sports information director and taught in the kinesiology department. Over the years he would teach every course in the kinesiology curriculum.  He was appointed chair of the PE department in 1965 and became Pasadena’s athletic director in 1967. From that point on, until his retirement as baseball coach in 1999, Land served as athletic director, PE department chair and baseball head coach.

“My plan was to get a degree,” Land said. “I thought about getting a teaching credential and then to teach and coach in high school. Getting both jobs was a surprise. In each case, it was kind of ‘the right place at the right time. There was a need at the school and they recognized that I had some ability and a commitment.

I worked in Sports Information; I helped clean the tennis courts; I had taken big loads in school; I helped with the team. Everything I did, I did uncompromisingly. I was five or six years older than the other players, so I was asked to go ahead and coach the baseball team. I had been on the staff seven years; I had my master’s degree and had served a couple of years as chair of the PE department when the athletic director vacancy came up suddenly. The President (W.S. Brown) asked if I would be interested in the job.”

When he wasn’t working - which was hardly ever - he spent his time earning a PhD from USC and raising two children with Barbara, Brian and Cheree.

If there wasn’t enough on Land’s plate, he served as NAIA District 3 Chair, was president of the NAIA and was a member of the 1984 Olympic Committee.

An overwhelming amount of work under normal circumstances, Land never worked under normal circumstances. In 1973, Pasadena College packed up and moved to its present location in San Diego. Land’s duties now included the transition from Pasadena to San Diego. Scheduling issues, fundraising and purchasing of buses and moving the entire department was only the beginning.

In 1973, the present site of Point Loma Nazarene University had a gym, a beat up baseball field and an even more beat up track. Land, a skilled carpenter, put every coach and athletic department administrator to work. In those days a person probably had a better chance of getting hired if they had a construction background.

“I was not one of the ‘world was coming to an end,’” said Land. “I thought the world was opening up. Many had a hard time leaving Pasadena, mainly teachers.  But the athletic department didn’t have any decent facilities so I thought coming to San Diego, with a real gymnasium, a track/ football field - which we converted to soccer and a baseball field - was a huge improvement.  We went from almost nothing to something. I believed the move would make us be a better, stronger athletic program.”

Slowly, despite limited funding, the facilities were upgraded.  Much of the improvements were with material that Land and his crew salvaged and recycled from Pasadena’s athletic facilities. Over time, the baseball diamond was transformed into the gem it is today; pathways, retaining walls, fences, seating for fans, decks,  scoreboards, restrooms and concession stands were built; tennis courts were installed; a soccer field was added and the track drastically enhanced;  a softball field was built.

Improvements were made to the gym that allowed the facility to be used for PE classes, intramural events and for many years, chapel. In 2002, thanks in part to Land’s relentless fundraising, the university added a state -of-the-art athletic training clinic, one of the best in the NAIA.

Still that’s not all he had to face as athletic director. Title IX was passed by Congress in 1972. By the late 70’s colleges around the country - including Point Loma - now had to have a balance of men’s and women’s athletic teams.

Up until 1977, women’s sports at Pasadena/ Point Loma came and then went. Philosophically, Dr. Land wholeheartedly supported Title IX. He was now given the green light from the college and immediately went to work. In just one year, Point Loma went from zero to sponsoring eight women’s squads: field hockey, badminton, volleyball, basketball, softball, tennis, cross country and track and field.

Not only was Point Loma going full speed ahead with the implementation of Title IX, as a member of the NAIA’s executive committee, Land pushed for national recognition of women’s sports. Through his efforts and others, the NAIA would sponsor national championships for women a year before the NCAA did.

Since then, not only has the university maintained a high level of competition among its men’s teams, Point Loma claims one of the best women’s programs in the country. Last year six of the seven PLNU women’s teams qualified for national championship play. All seven women’s teams were ranked in the NAIA top-25 and many in the top-10. Hundreds of women have earned All-Americans status over the years and the university can boast about its Conference, Regional and National Players of the Year.  

Building facilities, working as kinesiology chair, teaching every class offered, moving the athletic department, funding and guiding women’s sports, coaching his baseball team to over 750 wins, 16 postseason appearances and two World Series berths are only the tip of the iceberg of Land’s service to this university. He has been recognized with induction into the NAIA, the American Baseball Coaches Association and his alma mater’s Hall of Fames.

Now that he is officially retired, Land plans on being around more for household duties handed to him by Barbara. Land also looks forward to spending more time with his family, especially granddaughter, Dorothy Ann.

Retirement is a subjective term, however. The first thing Land has on the agenda is a return to coaching, though he hasn’t really ever stopped. Over the years he has led various military all-star teams in competition from San Diego to Central American. This summer, Land will guide college athletes for the first time since his retirement as PLNU’s coach in 1999. His latest assignment is as head coach of the Pittsfield American Defenders baseball team in the New England Collegiate Baseball League.

“It will be a fun adventure,” Land said. “It’s physically demanding. The job includes a lot of travel with eight hour bus rides. But getting to know 26 people I have never seen before will be a challenge and a fun experience.”

There is a chance that Land will continue to serve PLNU as a part-time fund raiser. Regardless, he and Barbara will be in the stands for as many events as possible and will remain active members of the Point Loma Sports Associates, the athletic department booster club.  Land will also be a source of support and assistance to the new Athletic Director, Ethan Hamilton.

Land had a passion for the many jobs he held at Point Loma Nazarene. He had a passion for what the university stands for and a passion for the success of the thousands of athletes and students he came in contact with. “Coach Land”, as he is known to most, served as an inspiration to generations of athletes, students and coaches. His mentorship and general interest in all members of the Point Loma community helped guide many who had contact with him to success in sports and in life.

There is no one who dedicated themselves to Point Loma athletics like Coach Carroll Land. But that’s not the way he sees it. Land believes working in higher education at a Christian institution was a calling and a blessing.

“I think the everyday world is mainly consumed with making financial gains,” Land said. “But the scripture says, ‘He who is greatest among you shall be your servant.’  In a sense, that’s a commandment of how we are to live. To work at a place that has that as a tenant was a very rewarding experience.”