SCC Massage Students, Panthers Do Two-Hand Touch - Southern Pines Pilot

[massage]

This past Monday, several Sandhills Community College Massage Therapy students got as close to the Carolina Panthers as possible without having to be tackled.

Massage Therapy instructor Samantha Allen had two of her students express an interest in working with professional athletes. After visiting the NFL team’s website, Allen, who has been teaching massage therapy at Sandhills since 2003, decided to see about connecting with the Panthers.

Allen sent a “shot in the dark email” on Wednesday Nov. 18, asking if her senior massage therapy students could practice on their players. To her surprise, she not only got a reply but an affirmative one.

“On Friday, the general manager for the Panthers called us and told us that we were going to have the opportunity to massage the players,” Allen said.

Following the big win on Sunday Nov. 22 against the Washington Redskins, the 11-0 football team opened its facility to the Sandhills students the next day. After a brief review on sports massage with Sandhills Sports Massage Training professor Mary Ellis Farina, eight of 10 students from Allen’s class traveled to the Panthers facility in Charlotte.

The students paired up with players, giving them full body massages, helping move fluid in the players’ bodies and have them recover in preparation for this past Thursday’s game in Dallas.

“It was great to get to do what you do and feel good about it,” Allen said.

The Sandhills Therapeutic Massage program is a two-year program at Sandhills where students can pursue an associate’s degree in the field. According to the school’s website, the program is one of the “oldest degree programs of its kind in the state, offering the highest level of training for massage therapists in North Carolina since 2001.”

The students learn a core base of knowledge and skills including “anatomy, physiology, communication, psychology, and energetic concepts” which creates a “well-rounded and grounded” massage therapy student.

This was the first time that any non-professional was allowed to massage the players. The Sandhills students were there for three hours. Out of the 54 players for the Carolina Panthers, the students were able to massage 31 of them, including team starters.

“I’m super proud of my students. They did an excellent job,” Allen said.

Allen was most impressed by the way the team’s head athletic trainer, Ryan Vermillion, and the rest of the Panthers staff treated her students.

“We made it very clear that this was not a photo opportunity for us,” Allen said. “Everyone treated us with complete respect and had a great attitude toward us being there.”

Allen hopes this opportunity will help motivate her students.

“It’s a great opportunity to learn from experience,” Allen said. “And this was the experience of a lifetime.”



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