The sports medicine program took a field trip to the UT campus this past Tuesday in order to explore the sport program there.

“It was getting them exposed to different things that happened behind the scenes of an athletic facility,” trainer Linda Bowman said.

The trip involved the students talking to a compliance officer, a representative from marketing and sales, and someone from the media department about the UT sports program.

“They learned different aspects, not necessarily all sports medicine, but they learned there are other opportunities instead of just sports medicine out there,” Bowman said. “We wanted to expose them to different things from that.”

The sports medicine program helps prepare athletes for practices and games and treats injuries at games during the fall semester, and then involves more bookwork and learning off the field during the spring semester.

“The kids learning is more real life situations because they’re seeing a lot of hands on stuff,” Bowman said.

Though sports medicine is a small program with little representation, all of the students are dedicated and motivated to be there.

“I would like to do it as a career considering my family’s in the whole medical field,” freshman Reese Seeger said. “I thought it’d be a great opportunity in life.”

However, the sports medicine program offers experiences other than just learning about athletes and injuries.

“Getting to deal with people, getting to learn, new opportunities, getting to meet new people and just getting to have a medical information background” Seeger said.

And the unique cooperation that the program gets to have with the sports scene will stay with the students long after high school.

“I like the excitement of [the football games], the energy of the band, and being with all the football players on the sideline and being involved in it,” junior Hannah Breeden said.