Long before he ran Daniel Hall as "Pop" Sharp, Ike Sharp and his longtime friend, Otis Turner, gave the Tiger football team a reason for gratitude on Thanksgiving Day 1949. Playing at Henderson State in the 39th Battle of the Ravine, Ouachita trailed 14-0 in the fourth quarter. Over the final seven minutes, the Tigers called on Sharp to convert three onside kicks and trusted Turner to make two extra points and a game-winning field goal. The duo delivered on every opportunity, resulting in a 17-14 comeback victory.

For Ike, a two-way lineman and placekicker from Warren, Arkansas, it was another moment in his college experience defined by faith. According to his son, Ouachita Director of Athletics David Sharp, Ike's most important act of faith began by meeting Billie Geurin, a music major from Little Rock, Arkansas.

"There's no question that God placed her and my dad together here," David said. "My dad would tell you that he did not know Christ when he got here, and she influenced him. He made a profession of faith while he was in school."

Ike and Billie both graduated from Ouachita and married on June 8, 1951. The couple spent their first five years of marriage in Mountain Home and Prescott, Arkansas, welcoming their first two children, Paul and Jane Sharp, in the process. In 1956, the Sharps relocated to Douglas, Arizona, a city directly bordering Mexico. It was here that the family's youngest member, David, was born and raised.

In addition to being on the high school's football staff, Ike led Douglas to three straight state championships from 1960 to 1962 as head baseball coach. He was inducted into the Arizona Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2005. 

Ike retired from coaching in 1970 to focus on athletic administration. Though David never got to play for him, his father did pass down passions for both sports and his alma mater. Each Christmas, the family returned to Arkansas for two weeks to visit Ouachita and old friends.

"Ouachita is about its people," David said. "That's what makes you want to come here. There wasn't any doubt of where I was going to school."

All three Sharp children decided to attend Ouachita. Ike and Billie moved back to Arkansas in 1983, and they soon felt called to return to campus themselves. From 1990 until 2002, they served as head residents at Daniel Hall. Students quickly began referring to the couple as "Mom" and "Pop" Sharp, and the names stuck even after their retirement.

On May 2, 2010, Ike died. Before his passing, he was inducted into the Ouachita Athletics Hall of Fame in 2006. Posthumously joining him in that year's class was Otis Turner.

"I was so excited for my dad because it not only acknowledged what he did, but also how much he loved this place and what he put into it," David said. "It was rewarding to see him get his due."
 
EXTRA TIDBIT: Ike taught both of his sons how to kick and, like their father before them, they doubled as linemen and kickers for Ouachita. Paul was a First Team All-Arkansas Intercollegiate Conference selection on the defensive line in 1973, while David scored 100 special teams points across his collegiate career.