Whitley Williams joined the Samford staff in May 2021 and spent her first year as the Head Football Athletic Trainer with the Bulldogs football program. In 2022, Williams transitioned to Director of Sports Medicine – Head Football Athletic Trainer. Williams oversees medical services for the football team and coordinates the emergency planning and training for the Sports Medicine Department. She also oversees the Sports Medicine Student Assistant Intern Program.
Williams serves on the Sports Medicine team for the NFL’s East West Shrine Bowl. She joined the team in January 2020 for the 95th East-West Bowl Game and continues to serve on staff. She also serves on the Executive Council for the Alabama Athletic Trainers’ Association as the At-Large One and chairs the Collegiate and Professional Athletic Trainers Committee. Williams is also a member of the Southeast Athletic Trainers’ Association Collegiate Athletic Trainers Committee. She is also an athletics representative on the Samford CARES team.
Prior to joining the staff at Samford, she served as Assistant Athletic Trainer at Furman University, providing care for the Paladins football team and co-ed cheerleading squad from 2017-2021. She also served as a member of the COVID Task Force Team and was the coordinator of the Sports Medicine Student Assistant Internship Program. Williams completed her Athletic Training Fellowship at Furman University in 2017 while providing care for the men’s lacrosse program and assisting with coverage of the football program.
Williams holds several professional certifications and licenses, including Licensed Athletic Trainer from the Alabama Board of Athletic Trainers (LAT); Certified Athletic Trainer from the National Athletic Trainers’ Association Board of Certification (ATC); and American Heart Association CPR/AED for Healthcare Providers.
Her professional involvement includes serving as a preceptor for The University of West Alabama, The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Eastern Kentucky University, and Moravian College. Williams is also certified in Dry Needling, QPR Suicide Prevention, and is a Professional Yoga Therapist in Medical Therapeutic Yoga.
Williams earned a Master’s degree in Athletic Training from The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, where she completed her graduate assistantship with the Mocs football program. She completed her Bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology with a minor in Psychology at Auburn University.
A Bridgeport, Alabama native, she attended Auburn University, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology in 2013 with a secondary concentration in Psychology.
