For high school athletic trainers, it’s not all tape and ice
My son sprained his ankle skateboarding the last weekend of June. He was expected to play volleyball with his club team in Orlando, Florida, eight days later, and if there was any chance of that happening, he needed a hastened rehabilitation. I knew that icing the ankle immediately was crucial, but had no idea how to accelerate the healing process afterwards.
My good friend Jim Reilly was a student athletic trainer for Ohio State’s football team, then later became the head trainer at Central Catholic High School in Toledo, Ohio. He received a master’s degree in athletic administration from the University of Toledo. Central Catholic has won three state titles in football the past five years, and an integral part of that program is Reilly. If there were any speedy methods for rehabilitating my son’s ankle, he would know them.
Tape
Caden Chavez will be attending Fordham University this fall, and plans on studying business. He graduated from Loyola High School last spring, where he played baseball and was a student athletic trainer for the football team.
“I was a member of Loyola’s Sports Medicine Club starting my freshman year,” said Chavez. “It was run by the athletic trainers.”
Chavez was interested in studying the body and how it performed and functioned during athletics. The club focused on injury prevention as well.
“I had a friend who was already in the club, so it seemed like it would be fun.”
Chavez’s favorite sport as a trainer was football. His duties included taping the players before practice and competition and helping on the sidelines during Friday night games.
“The players, trainers, and coaches were fun to be around. I just remember laughing all the time.”
Student athletic trainers aren’t permitted to address injuries, but Chavez did observe the adult trainers as they worked on injured players.
JOSH GALLAGHER (left), who graduates in 2026, with his friend and former Loyola student, athletic trainer Caden Chavez.
“The trainers would talk to me about it afterwards so I could learn what to do,” said Chavez. “I’ll miss the athletes, and especially the trainers We joked a lot with each other and shared a lot of camaraderie.”
One of those trainers was Tim Moscicki.
Ice
“I’ve been doing this for 36 years,” said Moscicki. “Sports go year-round, so there are no breaks. Athletic trainers can put in 60 to 70 hours of work in a week.”
Tim Moscicki attended Loyola rival St. Frances High School. Unlike Caden Chavez, he wasn’t involved in athletic training as a student. Instead he ran cross country and track and played soccer. It wasn’t until attending Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo that he became interested in athletic training.
“I took a college class, and the rest is history.”
Moscicki has been at Loyola for 28 years and is the head athletic trainer and director of student health for the entire student body. He’s the coordinator for the school’s Concussion Program and is responsible for coordinating and communicating with physicians, parents, administrators, teachers and coaches in matters that affect a student’s physical health.
“The list goes on,” he laughed.
Of course Moscicki is a Loyola sports fan, but he also follows NASCAR. He admires the late, great L.A. Dodger athletic trainer Bill Buehler, too.
“I always thought it was cool when Bill Buehler went out to take care of a Dodger,” he said. “Unfortunately, I never met him.”
My son was not healed enough to play in Orlando—his sprain was severe, a syndesmonic injury—but Reilly’s rehabilitation routine amazingly got him off crutches before he travelled to Florida. He was at least able to cheer his team on.
Category: People
