Texas Tech University Athletics
Tech announces sports medicine promotions in football
March 24, 2023 | Football, Health & Wellness
Michael Ramirez has been promoted to oversee the sports medicine responsibilities with the Texas Tech football program
LUBBOCK, Texas – Texas Tech Athletics announced Friday the promotion of Michael Ramirez to Associate Athletics Director and Director of Football Sports Medicine as well as Katherine Carden to associate athletic trainer and football rehabilitation coordinator.
Ramirez replaces Drew Krueger, who has accepted the head athletic trainer position with the Arizona Cardinals in the NFL. Krueger previously served nine seasons as part of the Texas Tech sports medicine staff, including each of the past seven as the head football athletic trainer. Â
"We are happy for Drew and know he will do great things in the NFL," said Grant Stovall, Senior Associate Athletics Director for Student-Athlete Health and Wellness. "I am excited that Mike has accepted this new role and know he will be great leading this group who will continue to provide outstanding care for our student-athletes. Katie has done a great job during her time here and has earned the trust of our players, team physicians and coaches. She will be outstanding in this new role coordinating and managing the rehabilitation needs for the football program."
In his new role, Ramirez, who is entering his seventh season on the Texas Tech sports medicine staff, will oversee the round-the-clock care of more than 100 student-athletes in the Football Training Facility. He will direct a staff of three additional athletic trainers who work with team doctors to provide the most up-to-date prevention, treatment and rehabilitation for football student-athletes. Â
Ramirez joined the athletics department in 2017 as an assistant athletic trainer with the football program before being promoted to associate athletic trainer a year later, a role Carden will now occupy. In addition to his role as Texas Tech's head football athletic trainer, he will also oversee the sports medicine needs for both the men's and women's golf programs.
During his time at Texas Tech, Ramirez has served as a supervisor of undergraduate and master's athletic training students with the football program as well as the athletics department's relationship with Gatorade.
Ramirez also coordinated the athletics department's response to the COVID-19 pandemic, establishing protocols across all sports for testing procedures in compliance with NCAA and Big 12 guidelines as well as securing appropriate testing materials. In response, Ramirez received the Director of Athletics Award of Excellence at Texas Tech's end-of-year department banquet in 2021.Â
Prior to Texas Tech, Ramirez was the head athletic trainer for Desert Ridge High School in Arizona from 2015-17 and was an athletic trainer for Deer Park High School in Texas from 2013-15. He was previously an athletic training intern for the Houston Texans in the NFL from 2011-13.
Ramirez is a graduate of Arizona State with a bachelor of science degree in kinesiology (2009) as well as the Texas Tech Health Sciences Center where he earned his master's in athletic training in 2011. He and his wife, Lizzy, reside in Lubbock with their children, Rory and Banks.
"We're fortunate to have the best medical team in the country here at Texas Tech," head coach Joey McGuire said. "Our student-athletes truly receive the best care possible and that's due to the work Drew, Mike, Katie, Steve (Lapso) and their team have provided every single day. We can't thank Drew enough for the time and effort he put in to make our program and most importantly our student-athletes better. We know he will have great success in the NFL. We're thrilled Mike has accepted this new position as he has quickly earned the trust and respect of our entire program during my tenure."
Carden enters her third season on the Texas Tech sports medicine staff as she joined as an assistant athletic trainer with the football program prior to the 2021 season. She arrived at Texas Tech following two seasons as an athletic training intern with the San Francisco 49ers from 2019-21.
Prior to her time in the NFL, Carden was a graduate athletic trainer at Oklahoma from 2017-19 where she assisted with sports medicine needs for football as well as the women's gymnastics and spirit programs.
Carden earned her undergraduate degree in kinesiology from the University of Massachusetts in 2014. Like Ramirez, she is also a graduate of the Texas Tech Health Sciences Center as she earned her master's in athletic training in 2017. She later added a master's of education in intercollegiate athletic administration from the University of Oklahoma in 2019.
The sports medicine staff is part of Texas Tech's Health and Wellness Department, which also includes other important student-athlete services such as sports nutrition, sports psychology and strength and conditioning. The four units oversee the health and well-being of more than 400 student-athletes on campus across all 17 sports.
