From playing for the Herd to protecting the Herd
12/10/25 The Parthenon
When college acceptance letters start rolling in, most students already have an idea of where they want to go. For some at Marshall University, joining the Herd feels like destiny; for Scott Ballou, the path to becoming a proud son of Marshall started with a single question from a baseball coach and a leap of faith.
Originally from Daytona Beach, Florida, Ballou was playing on a summer baseball team in Orlando when a Marshall assistant coach approached him. What happened next would change the course of his life.
“I didn’t really have an idea of what I was going to do, but I needed to make a decision quick,” Ballou said. “I had a really good tournament that day, and the coach was like, ‘You ever heard of Marshall?’”
Curious, Ballou turned to a few teammates, who told him about Marshall’s legendary 1992 1-AA football national championship. He decided to visit the campus and instantly knew it was where he belonged.
“Marshall Baseball opened a lot of doors for me, and I didn’t plan on coming here and staying the rest of my life,” Ballou said. “I came here, played baseball, met a West Virginia girl, started a family. This university has been a lot for me, and I’m very proud to be a Marshall Baseball alumnus.”
From 1993 to 1996, Ballou played for the Thundering Herd while pursuing a degree in criminal justice. When his playing days ended, his next chapter began just steps away from where it all started: serving the same community that shaped him.
“If I didn’t continue my career in baseball after college, I knew I wanted to use my degree, and Marshall gave that to me,” he said, “but they gave me so much more: a great profession, a great family. I teach here at Marshall. I owe all of that to that one day in Orlando meeting that coach 32 years ago.”
Now the midnight shift supervisor for the Marshall University Police Department, Ballou has spent decades giving back, mentoring student-athletes, teaching self-defense classes and helping keep the campus he loves safe.
“They have me come in and talk to the team,” Ballou said. “When school starts in August, I’m really proud to be part of what Marshall Baseball is now compared to what it was back then. There’s so much energy, drive, passion. The coaches are tremendous – the support is tremendous; it’s all kind of surreal to me. Being in law enforcement and being a mentor to these guys, and they look up to me, it makes me really proud. It really does. It makes me a proud alumnus.”
Even after all these years, Ballou still keeps in touch with his teammates. After the long-awaited opening of Jack Cook Field, he was able to reconnect with old players during the dedication ceremony, a moment that felt “full circle.”
“I still love being a part of the program, and I appreciate the coaches allowing me to be around and mentor these younger players,” Ballou said. “Some of them need guidance, they need direction, and if I’m a small part of that, then that’s great.”
Along with his work at MUPD, Ballou has been teaching self-defense classes for women on campus since 1999, driven by his instinct to help wherever he can.
“So, I have my regular job as a police officer, I coach high school baseball, teach these self-defense classes; it keeps me busy,” Ballou said.
Whether he’s keeping the Herd safe overnight, mentoring the next generation of players or teaching students how to protect themselves, Ballou’s presence continues to echo through Marshall’s campus. What began as a chance meeting on a baseball field has become a lifelong bond between a man, his university and the community he’s proud to call home.
