Oberlin College Athletics

Fredrick Shults was born February 7, 1932, in Detroit, Michigan. In 1950, Shults enrolled at Oberlin College. He received the B.A. degree with a double major in physical education and history in 1954. While attending Oberlin, Shults participated in soccer, basketball, and baseball. He was captain of the soccer and baseball teams as a senior and received All-American recognition in soccer. Shults served as an ensign and lieutenant J.G. in the United States Navy from 1954 to 1956. He returned to Oberlin in 1957 as a temporary instructor of physical education and director of the intramural program. During the summer he attended graduate school at Ohio State University. He remained at Oberlin until 1959, when he received the M.A. degree in physical education from OSU. That same year, Shults began a doctoral program at Indiana University and began a graduate assistantship with the Intramural Division. He began permanent employment at Oberlin College in 1960. In 1967 he received the P.Ed.D. degree from Indiana University. Shults was named head coach of the Oberlin men's soccer team in 1963. In 31 seasons, he has compiled a win-loss record of 200-135-49, making him the "winningest" soccer coach in the college's history. Shults guided the men's lacrosse team from 1963 to 1974 and from 1977 to 1980, and he had an overall record of 93-79-5. From 1964 to 1965 he served as the president of the Ohio Collegiate Soccer Association. He was also president of the Midwest Lacrosse Association in 1964-65 and from 1972-1974. He was named the North Coast Athletic Conference Men's Soccer Coach of the Year in 1987 and 1988. Shults has written many articles concerning athletics and physical education during his tenure at Oberlin. His 327-page dissertation, The History and Philosophy of Athletics at Oberlin College, was completed in 1967. His most recent article, "Coaches and Officials: Friends and Enemies," was written for the May-June 1991 issue of Soccer Journal. Shults continues to be an active participant in athletics. In 1982 he was named State Squash Champion in the over-50 age group. This past winter, he won the State Squash Championship in the over-60 age group.