The roars of the crowd soon quiet down and the field falls silent; players start taking a knee and the crowd gasps in awe. Then the rustling of the athletic trainers soon fills up the stadium. What most people are focused on are the players on the field, but they pay little to no attention to the people that help when those favorite players fall down; they are the Husky Athletic Trainers.
One of the trainers describes how being a trainer affects her and what she wants for her players. Trainers aren’t just watching the games, but looking out for injuries.
“I feel like […] my job as an athletic trainer is to make sure that [the players] are safe and that they have water and that they get taken care of when they need it,” junior Amaris Noriega said.
Another trainer points to the difference between the athletic trainers and the head trainers. As students, they aren’t yet able to do the player’s therapy, but they still learn from what they are able to observe.
“Coach G is the one who helps [the players] with therapy and [we’re the ones that] give them water […] and fix them up if they start bleeding,” freshman Destiny Aguilar said.
Although it appears that the trainers don’t do very much compared to all the athletes on campus, that statement is very wrong. The athletes usually get all the fame and glory, but without the trainers the athletes wouldn’t be able to play.
“If they know what they’re doing and they’re confident in that, I’ll walk them through it, and I’ll allow them to do it depending on what it is. If they haven’t been taught it or they don’t know what’s going on, I’ll do it while they watch,” Head Trainer Kristy Garza said.
Trainers are usually underappreciated and overlooked, but for the athletes, the trainers mean so much more.
“[I think the athletes wouldn’t be where they are] because the trainers are there in case of an injury and they help us take care of ourselves. In the process they cheer us on which we need and they help motivate us. Plus, we form friendships with them which is always nice,” sophomore Katelyn Lopez said.