Erin Lunt at Fort Gregg-Adams, Virginia (left) and at Atlanta Falcons summer 2024 training camp. Photos courtesy of Erin Lunt.
As a second-year graduate student in the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga’s athletic training program, Erin Lunt not only helps keep student-athletes healthy but also serves her country as a first lieutenant in the Tennessee National Guard.
For Lunt, service is a way of life—whether on the sidelines working with the Mocs soccer team or in her line of duty as an ordnance officer with her maintenance platoon.
“I have always loved being part of something bigger than myself,” she said.
Lunt was raised both in an athletic training and military family—hence, an upbringing inspired and steeped in service.
Her father, Sam Lunt, served as an athletic trainer at Florida State University for 31 years before retiring in 2017.
Her aunt, Col. Marsha Lunt, retired, and uncle, Lt. Col. Al Lunt, retired, both enjoyed distinguished careers in the U.S. Army. Marsha Lunt served 30 years in the U.S. Army Medical Corps and Al Lunt was active-duty military for 25 years—16 in which he served in psychological operations positions or supported the PSYOP Regiment.
Lunt’s journey started in the Navy Junior ROTC program during her time at Lincoln High School in Tallahassee, Florida.
“I just wanted to see if I could do it and if I could handle any form of discipline,” she said, “and I ended up really enjoying it. I loved the structure of the military.”
Getting college paid for also helped, she said with a laugh, and she pursued a military path—attending Stetson University in DeLand, Florida, on a full National Army ROTC Scholarship.
“My aunt and uncle were super helpful and very supportive,” she recalled. “They would tell me about their military experiences and what they did in order to succeed. They both had Army ROTC scholarships as well.”
Her May 2022 commissioning ceremony, which coincided with her graduation from Stetson, was quite the family affair; her uncle swore her in while her parents and aunt pinned her rank.
“The whole time she’s known us, we have both been in the military, so she was aware that we traveled to different countries, had an opportunity to live in different places and received military and civilian schooling beyond our initial college experience. So I think that made her aware of opportunities that the military could provide her,” said Marsha Lunt, who was one of the first women to graduate from the Army’s Airborne School—and later one of the first female commanders of a medical clearing company supporting an Infantry Division. After retiring from the military, she spent 15 years as the emergency manager for Womack Army Medical Center at Fort Bragg, North Carolina (now known as Fort Liberty).
“We explained the difference between being an officer and an enlisted person. You have to have a college degree to be an officer, and there are different routes you can take for that. One of them is the ROTC, and they do provide scholarships … The idea of getting into a good university and having it fully funded through an ROTC scholarship was pretty enticing. My husband and I had both done that and when she looked into it, I think she realized that it was a pretty cool program and something she’d like to do.”
The scholarships, she said, are very competitive and aren’t easy to come by.
“You don’t get those scholarships unless you can academically perform,” Marsha Lunt continued, “and then—on the other hand—you have to hold your own on the physical side.”
Col. Marsha Lunt, retired, 2nd Lt. Erin Lunt and Lt. Col. Alfred Lunt, retired, at Erin Lunt’s May 2022 commissioning ceremony. Photo courtesy of Marsha Lunt.
After graduating from Stetson University with a bachelor’s degree in health science and a minor in psychology, Lunt was commissioned into the Tennessee Army National Guard—and spent her first year of service attending and graduating from the Ordnance Basic Officer Leader Course at the Army Logistics University at Fort Gregg-Adams, Virginia. She came to UTC in June 2023 to begin pursuing her master’s degree, with an expected graduation in May 2025.
After initially planning to become a medical service officer in the Army, her path took a slight detour after learning about that military branch’s need for ordnance officers.
“I found that I really like working behind the scenes,” she explained, “and I was lucky enough that Tennessee had a vacancy for an ordnance officer.
“I’m the platoon leader of a maintenance platoon. Instead of athletes that we’re taking care of, we’re taking care of equipment and vehicles and working to get those things that are non-mission capable to a fully mission-capable status. It’s similar to athletic training, which tries to get an injured athlete back to a healthy status and return to play.
Her unit is stationed in Humboldt, Tennessee, approximately four hours northwest of Chattanooga.
“One weekend a month and a couple of weeks in the summer, I’m with my unit,” she said. “If there’s a natural disaster or state of emergency, there’s the potential to be activated.”
To date, she has not been called upon for additional duties, but she remains ready for deployment if needed.
Inspired by her father’s career, Lunt initially thought she wanted to go to medical school but discovered her passion lay in athletic training during her undergraduate days.
“I just randomly got my work-study job in Stetson’s sports medicine department,” she recalled. “At first, it was like, ‘This is kind of cool,’ but soon I realized athletic training was everything I was looking for.”
Growing up in a college campus community, Lunt said she had plenty of opportunities to observe her father in action.
“Watching my dad do evaluations was fascinating,” she said. “He could poke around for a minute, ask a few questions and diagnose something like plantar fasciitis on the spot. It was so cool to see that kind of expertise, and it made me want to go into health care.”
Her father’s influence extended beyond inspiration.
“When my parents dropped me off at UTC, he told me, ‘Don’t forget, you have a 24/7 hotline if you need to talk about school or anything,’” she said.
UTC Assistant Professor and Athletic Training Clinical Education Coordinator Lynette Carlson lauded Lunt’s work ethic and the types of experiences she has already been a part of.
“Erin came in with a lot of real-world experience that lends itself to the service that we provide as athletic trainers,” Carlson said. “Any time students can bring with them real-world experience, it’s always a plus for us—and it’s a plus for them. They can use their skills right away and shift them into athletic training skills.
“That’s what Erin brought in. She just had a really solid base of how to work with people.”
Carlson recalled that when Lunt first arrived at UTC, it overlapped with her military training.
“As a first-year student, the fall semester is so challenging; they’re getting very important content at that time—foundational content—and she had to miss it. We had to work with her, but really … she did the work there,” Carlson said. “She was at her summer camp doing her training—and then at night, she would somehow be doing her studying. I don’t know how she was able to work on this and arrange it, but she really exceeded our expectations and was caught up when she came back. It was rather impressive.”
Erin Lunt, a second-year graduate student in the UTC athletic training program, arrived on campus after being commissioned into the Tennessee National Guard.
This summer, Lunt was a sports medicine intern with the National Football League’s Atlanta Falcons, an experience she describes as transformative.
“It was amazing. The full-time staff were some of the greatest athletic trainers I’ve ever worked with,” she said. “I felt welcomed and part of the team, not just like an intern.”
Her days were long, sometimes starting at 6 a.m. and ending at 7:30 p.m., but Lunt embraced the grind.
“Despite how long the hours were, there wasn’t a single morning I woke up not excited to go to the facility,” she said.
Working with professional athletes, she could have been star-struck.
“When Kirk Cousins walked into the room for the first time, I took a second and thought, ‘This is a pretty important guy,’” she said when talking about the Falcons’ star quarterback. “But for the most part, they were just people to me.”
At the beginning of training camp, the sports medicine interns were introduced to the team; the Falcons’ director of sports medicine, Jake Pfeil, told the whole organization about Lunt’s Army affiliation.
“When they found out I did weapons logistics, some of them were like, ‘Oh, yeah. Don’t mess with her,’” she recalled. “I had a couple of players ask me about it and they found it fascinating.”
Lunt sees clear parallels between her two worlds.
“In both environments, you’re making quick decisions under pressure,” she said. “In athletic training, it’s about determining if a player can go back in the game. In the Army, it’s about getting vehicles repaired and ready for missions.”
Lunt took a moment when asked, “What do you see yourself doing when you grow up?”
“That’s an excellent question. I’m still trying to figure that out if I’m being honest,” she said. “From the time that I was commissioned into the Army in May of 2022, I have eight years of service that I’m obligated for—and I have a little over five and a half years left. I’m going to take my first eight years and then we’re going to make more decisions when we get there.
“I would love to see where I could go working in college athletics or potentially professional athletics. Obviously, I love my military career, and I would love to keep seeing where I’m able to take that in the National Guard and what opportunities may pop up, like in the military athletic training setting.”
Thanks to being part of a military family, Veterans Day holds special significance to her.
“It’s important to take a step back and recognize the sacrifices others have made,” Lunt said. “The military is its own way of life, and it’s important to honor those who have given up so much to serve.
“Every day, I try to embody that spirit of service.”
Erin Lunt’s military service summary
- Graduated from Lincoln High School in Tallahassee, Florida, in 2018, where she was in the Navy JROTC—attaining the rank of Executive Officer Cadet Lieutenant.
- Considered the U.S. Army and the Air Force Academy following high school and was nominated to attend the U.S. Military Academy at West Point by Florida U.S. Rep. Al Lawson.
- Attended Stetson University on a full National Army ROTC Scholarship.
- Commissioned as a second lieutenant into the Tennessee Army National Guard as an ordnance officer in May 2022—one of 16 members of the Eagle Battalion at Stetson advancing to officer rank during that university’s commission ceremony.
- In her first year of service, she attended and graduated from the Ordnance Basic Officer Leader Course (BOLC) at the Army Logistics University at Fort Gregg-Adams in Prince George County, Virginia.
- After completing BOLC, she is now a first lieutenant in the Tennessee Army National Guard, serving in a platoon leader position for a Forward Support Company maintenance platoon in G Troop Regimental Support Squadron (RSS) of the 1/278th Armored Cavalry Regiment (ACR), headquartered in Knoxville. The maintenance platoon supports a combined arms battalion.
Learn more
UTC Graduate Athletic Training Program
UTC named Tennessee’s ‘Best for Vets College’ by Military Times
Erin Lunt’s commissioning ceremony pinning: From left, her mom, Agnes Lunt; her dad, Sam Lunt; and her aunt, Col. Marsha Lunt, retired. Photo courtesy of Stetson University.
