One year since coming to Erskine, coach speaks at Thanksgiving chapel

Appointed one year ago to serve as head football coach at Erskine College, Shap Boyd addressed students, faculty, staff, and guests at a Thanksgiving chapel service Tuesday, sharing his testimony of God’s faithfulness to him. Boyd encouraged attendees to seek God’s purpose for their lives.

“Everyone is here for a reason. What’s your ‘why’? What’s your reason?” Boyd asked.

Boyd, Erskine’s first football coach since 1951, told the congregation about his journey into coaching. He described his childhood in a single-parent home without a male role model, but with a strong mother who taught him about God.

As his interest in sports grew, Boyd’s coaches became his role models. As a young adult, Boyd worked his way through graduate school as a coach, and eventually realized that he was called to coaching as a way to mentor others.

Based on his personal experience, Boyd encouraged his audience to show love to others and to understand that each person has a story.

“Life is a series of windows,” he said. “People come into your life, and it’s not an accident.”

Boyd quoted lyrics from the song “Centerfield” by John Fogerty to illustrate the attitude he believes all Christians should demonstrate: “Put me in, coach. I’m ready to play today.”

“It’s no good to be a Christian and not tell anyone,” he said.

Representatives from the Student Christian Association (SCA) participated in the chapel program, with Mary Pratt reading Psalm 100, Anna Price offering a prayer of thanksgiving, and SCA President Elizabeth Schneider reading a passage from the Gospel of Luke. The Chapel Music Ensemble led the music, and Chaplain Paul Patrick introduced the speaker and gave a benediction.