Pacific Lutheran University Athletics

EVANS "RED" CARLSON
(Football and Basketball)

Newspaper clippings of the time refer to Evans "Red" Carlson as "speedy," "fiery," "sensational" and "red-headed lightning." Apt adjectives to describe this early 1930s multi-sport star who was arguably the first outstanding player in a lengthy tradition of Pacific Lutheran gridiron greats. Carlson played for legendary Coach Cliff Olson, who later would name the speedster to his All-Time Lutes first team. Carlson, who earned his nickname for his wavy red hair, was a true "triple-threat" football player known for his dazzling long runs, a fine passing arm and pinpoint punts. Carlson, states Olson in the book, The Gladiators, "was one of the greatest runners we ever had, a streak of light." In addition to his football exploits, Carlson, barely 5 feet 10 inches, played center on the Pacific Lutheran basketball team and consistently used his great leaping ability to outjump taller opponents for rebounds.

Nina (Anderson) Larson was a pioneer in women's athletics at Pacific Lutheran College during the late 1930s. Long before women's sports was officially recognized at the intercollegiate level, Nina showcased her great athletic ability in four intramural sports: captain ball, volleyball, basketball and baseball. During her freshman and junior years, Nina played all four sports and was on the honor team in each. As a sophomore, she was on the board of the Women's Athletic Association and was chosen to head the basketball program which precluded her from participation that year. Her participation helped set the stage for the development of Pacific Lutheran's women's sports programs through the following decades.

EARL LUEBKER
(Sports Writer)

Earl Luebker, a sports writer for the Tacoma Morning News Tribune, first wrote about Pacific Lutheran when the athletic teams were the Knights, and closely followed the school throughout its nickname change to Lutes. His coverage kept the school's athletic teams on the local and regional sports pages throughout his 34-year career at the newspaper. Luebker started as a sports writer in 1949 and worked through the ranks, becoming the associate sports editor and later the sports editor in the 1980s. He retired from the Tacoma News Tribune in 1983. He joins former Tacoma News Tribune sports writer and associate David James (inducted in 1993) in the Pacific Lutheran University Athletic Hall of Fame.

Dr. David Olson built Pacific Lutheran University athletics into one of the premiere small college programs in the United States during his 28 years at the school. Dr. Olson served as athletic director and dean of the School of Physical Education from 1968-96. During Olson's tenure, PLU athletic teams won nine National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics championships, including three each in football and women's soccer, two in softball and one in women's cross country. At the same time, PLU garnered 167 conference titles and 25 conference all-sports awards, while increasing from 12 to a combined 19 men's and women's intercollegiate sports. He was president of the NAIA from 1985-86, president of the NAIA Athletic Directors Association from 1991-92, and chairman of the NAIA Council of Athletic Administrators from 1992-94. He was inducted into the NAIA Hall of Fame in 1989. Dr. Olson represented the United States as an administrator at the World University Games in Sofia, Bulgaria (1989), Sapporo, Japan (1991), Zakopane, Poland (1993) and Jaca, Spain (1995). In 1984, he was one of only five U.S. educators invited to the International Olympic Academy in Greece.

Tom Whalen, a 1960s men's basketball standout, holds the Pacific Lutheran single-season scoring record with 656 points and a 24.2 scoring average during the 1963-64 season. He is one of only two Pacific Lutheran players to score at least 600 points in a season, and with 537 points and a 19.2 average during the 1962-63 campaign, is one of only nine to score at least 500 points in a year. With 1,193 career points in only two years, he ranks 14th on the school's career scoring list. Whalen scored 41 points in a game as a senior, second on the single-game scoring list. The lanky 6-5 center, known for a sweeping hook shot, earned numerous honors while playing at Pacific Lutheran College, including the following: two-time first team All-Evergreen Conference; two-time NAIA District I Player of the Year; NAIA second team All-America; honorable mention UPI All-Coast; and honorable mention AP All-America.

John Zamberlin played in the National Football League for four years with the New England Patriots and two years with the Kansas City Chiefs. The Lute linebacker earned first team NAIA All-America and Associated Press Little All-America honors as a senior in 1978, and was named 1979 PLU Senior Athlete of the Year. During an outstanding four-year career, Zamberlin compiled 184 unassisted tackles among his nearly 300 total stops, and also had 10 interceptions and six quarterback sacks. Three times he earned all-conference and all-district honors. His number 56 is the only retired PLU football jersey.