Inductees

For the past 37 years, Eric McDonnell has stood right on the sidelines either with the University of Missouri football team or on the bench of the women’s basketball and volleyball programs and – best of all – they paid him to be there.

And to think his career as an athletic trainer almost never happened. You see, as a student at Platte County High School in the 1970s, McDonnell declined a coach’s invitation to join the football team, sensing he probably wouldn’t even see the field.

“But after a couple of conversations, he said, ‘We have this thing called an athletic trainer. You’d be working with the doctor. Would you be interested?’” McDonnell recalled.

Yes, McDonnell jumped at the chance and eventually climbed the ladder in Mizzou Athletics, later emerging as a key national voice in the field of athletic training. It’s quite a resume, which is why the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame proudly inducted McDonnell with the Class of 2019.

The Cliff’s Notes version of his career? That’s impossible. For instance, McDonnell:

• Enjoyed five years (1977-1981) as a student athletic trainer and then spent 19 seasons as the primary assistant in football before joining women’s basketball for 12 years. He is currently in his ninth season with volleyball.
• Served in leadership roles for the industry’s governing organizations, including Missouri Athletic Trainers Association President (1997-99), Mid-America Athletic Trainers Association President (2006-11), and National Athletic Trainers Association Board of Directors (2011-15).
• Chaired the Missouri ATA organization’s Governmental Affairs Committee from 2000 through 2008, working tirelessly to convert the state practice act from registration to licensure. That’s in addition to his national efforts, which now total similar licensure measures in 49 states.

McDonnell calls the licensure effort one of his most rewarding, considering it took three years for the bill’s introduction at the state Legislature. It means that athletic trainers in the state now are held to a higher standard, requiring a background check and proof of accredited college education.

“That protects the public from being misled by someone who is not properly credentialed as an athletic trainer,” said McDonnell, who holds bachelor’s degrees in secondary education and a master’s in educational administration.

All of which is part of a remarkable journey, inspired by mentors Fred Wappel (MSHOF 2014) and Dr. Glenn McElroy (MSHOF 1984).

When the Platte County coach floated the athletic trainer idea, 14-year-old McDonnell enrolled in a four-day summer workshop in Emporia, Kan.

“That’s when I knew what I wanted to do with my life,” McDonnell said. “While in those classes, I was exposed to the pioneers in the field, and grasped for the first time what specialized medical coverage could mean to athletes, I knew it fit me well.”

McDonnell learned the art of taping ankles – and it is an art, especially if you ask athletes – and wanted to earn a degree in the field. Initially, he considered the University of Nebraska, where Head Athletic Trainer George Sullivan encouraged him to meet with Mizzou’s legendary Wappel.

“Sullivan put his hand on my shoulder, and he said, ‘Son, that man will teach you more in one year than I will teach you in four,’” McDonnell said.

Watching Wappel, McDonnell took mental notes of the way his interaction with athletes built trust. Dr. McElroy allowed trainers to watch surgeries, quizzing them on ligaments and so forth.

Their professionalism – combined with the interpersonal style of his dad, a hardware store owner – became McDonnell’s approach to serving athletes.

Additionally, McDonnell has advocated for additional opportunities for women in the field. Today, women’s sports teams have full medical coverage where once only football did. Nationally, 50 percent of athletic trainers are women and cover all sports.

His career includes numerous honors: induction into the halls of fame of NATA, Mid America Athletic Trainers and the Missouri Athletic Trainers Association Sports Medicine. He was awarded MoATA’s Glenn L. McElroy, MD, Distinguished Service Award, and named 2007 Missouri Athletic Trainer’s Association Athletic Trainer of the Year. He was a NATA Service Award Winner in 2002 and a recipient of the NATA’s Most Distinguished Athletic Trainers Award in 2011.

McDonnell spends every free moment with his wife, Sabrina, and children Madison and Grant. They are active in Boy Scout Troop 706 and the Broadway Christian Church.

“My family is so supportive of my career, even though long hours go with the territory,” McDonnell said. “We still do so many things together, and we have always worked so hard to make that happen.”