[1] A native of Franklin County, Virginia, Gilmore played two seasons (1979–1980) of baseball at Coastal Carolina.
He also played minor league baseball in the Philadelphia Phillies organization for a short time.
[2] In 1982, Gilmore became a physical education teacher at Deep Creek Elementary School in Georgetown County, South Carolina.
The school's athletic programs moved to NCAA Division II for the start of the 1991–1992 academic year.
In 1994 and 1995, Gilmore's final two seasons at USC Aiken, his teams had a combined record of 69–46, but both failed to qualify for the NCAA tournament.
[2][5][6] Two future Major League Baseball (MLB) players, Adam Riggs and Bryan Ward, played under Gilmore at USC Aiken.
[8] In 2000, the team finished tied for fourth in the Big South and was eliminated early in the conference tournament.
In that time span, the team won four consecutive Big South Tournaments from 2001 to 2004, and Gilmore was named conference Coach of the Year in both 2002 and 2005.
[12][13][14] In 2008, the Chanticleers hosted and won the Conway Regional, scoring at least 10 runs in wins over fourth-seeded Columbia, third-seeded Alabama, and second-seeded East Carolina.
It then hosted the best-of-three Myrtle Beach Super Regional against eventual national champion South Carolina.
[18][19] Under Gilmore, Coastal Carolina's home field, Charles Watson Stadium, was renovated several times during the early 2000s.
During the 2013 season, it was rebuilt as part of a $10.2 million project to rebuild Coastal Carolina's baseball and softball facilities.
[20] On April 17, 2014, Gilmore earned his 1,000th career victory as the Chanticleers defeated Presbyterian College 4–3 in 13 innings at TicketReturn.com Field in Myrtle Beach, SC.
[23] Ten of Gilmore's players at Coastal Carolina have played in Major League Baseball: Mike Costanzo, Dave Sappelt, Tommy La Stella, Keith Hessler, Rico Noel, Taylor Motter, Jacob May, Zach Remillard, Anthony Veneziano, and Austin Kitchen.