Rachel Sharpe

Rachel Sharpe enters her 10th season as an assistant athletic trainer at the University of South Carolina.  She returned to the Carolina staff in 2019 after a one-year hiatus in which she served as the head athletic trainer of the Atlanta-based team in the Alliance of American Football, becoming the first female head athletic trainer in professional football. She works with the football team and serves as the rehab coordinator.

Prior to being hired full time, Sharpe served as a graduate assistant athletic trainer from 2009-11 while working towards her master’s in physical education with a concentration in athletic training. As a graduate assistant, she assisted with coverage of the USC football team (2009-10) and served as the head athletic trainer at WJ Keenan High School in Columbia (2010-11).  During the summer of 2010, she completed a preseason internship with the Tennessee Titans of the NFL.

In November 2013, Sharpe was asked to be a part of the NCAA Mental Health Task Force – a group created to discuss the numerous mental health issues currently facing student athletes. Since this meeting, she has presented to numerous groups on the role of athletic trainers in caring for student athletes’ mental wellness and written a chapter for the newly published NCAA mental health resource – “Mind, Body and Sport – Understanding and Supporting Student-Athlete Mental Wellness.”  She continues to work with a group within the athletic department seeking to ensure the mental wellness of Gamecock student athletes.

Originally from Jefferson City, Tenn., Sharpe received her bachelor’s degree in athletic training from Samford University in 2008. She is a certified member of the National Athletic Trainers Association and South Carolina Athletic Trainers Association.