August 5, 2016
East Texas Baptist receives its second ASC Athletic Training Staff of the Year Award. The East Texas Baptist athletic training staff consists of three members led by head athletic trainer Marcus Holliday, assistant trainers Barrett Jones and Heidi Hendrickson and graduate assistant Jeannette Utterback.
"This is a blessing," said Holliday. "To be recognized by your colleagues for an award like this is an honor."
Holliday enters his eighth year at East Texas Baptist University and his third as the head athletic trainer. Holliday started his career as an outreach athletic trainer for a private physical therapy company in Greenville, South Carolina. Prior to joining East Texas Baptist, Holliday served in an orthopedic physician practice and had the opportunity to provide care for athletes preparing for the NFL Combine, NBA Draft, and MLB Spring Training while working at the IMG International Performance Institute. Holliday is also currently an athletic trainer for the US Soccer Federation.
"Marcus and his staff of Athletic Trainers and student trainers are vital to the success of our athletic program," said ETBU Athletic Director Kent Reeves. "They work long, hard hours to treat and care for our student-athletes with a care that is second to none. This honor for them is very deserving and we appreciate the ASC for recognizing them for their great work."
Holliday earned his undergraduate degree from Presbyterian College in 1992 and his graduate degree from Furman University in 1995, while also working as a graduate assistant.
The ASC Athletic Training Staff of the Year award is presented by the conference following voting by the membership's athletic training staffs. All full-time athletic training staff members must be in good standing with professional organizations and be either NATA or state licensed, and the head athletic trainer must have been at the institution for a minimum of two years to be considered for the award.
The 2015-16 award is the 12th presented by the ASC. Former winners include Texas Dallas with four awards, Mary Hardin-Baylor and Ozarks with three awards each, East Texas Baptist and Hardin-Simmons has two and Concordia Texas, Howard Payne, Louisiana College, Sul Ross State, Texas-Tyler and former league members Mississippi College and Schreiner have one award apiece.