KOC Welcomes Atlanta Falcons Director of Performance Science for Inaugural Sports Medicine Symposium 

Knoxville Orthopaedic Clinic (KOC) partnered with Prisma Health and Blount Memorial Hospital to host a groundbreaking coaching conference offering sports medicine training and insight for local coaches, athletic trainers and healthcare professionals who work with student-athletes.

WATE’s Casey Kay looked deeper into the issues changing sports medicine at the high school level.

WVLT’s Rylee Robinson also explored the significance of the training event.

The symposium, the first of its kind in East Tennessee, took place Friday, June 20, from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at First Baptist Church of Maryville. The conference focused on the role of sports medicine in high school athletics and featured keynote speaker Josh Nelson, director of performance science for the National Football League’s Atlanta Falcons.

Dr. Kyle Boden, a fellowship-trained sports medicine surgeon at KOC and the first full-time sports medicine surgeon in Blount County, helped coordinate the conference and spoke in addition to Nelson, someone he considers a friend and colleague.

“Josh Nelson brings a wealth of knowledge that goes well beyond the weight room,” Boden said. “He has been on the front lines of research in every aspect of sports performance, from nutrition, athlete recovery, and injury prevention strategies to utilizing wearable technology to track athlete performance. I feel privileged that he is willing to share his expertise with our community.”

Boden has his own experience helping care for elite-level athletes. He played as a starting quarterback at Emory and Henry University. After medical school, he helped care for the University of Kentucky football team as a chief resident before joining the Cleveland Browns medical staff as an orthopaedic surgery sports medicine fellow. Dr. Boden is now team physician for Alcoa High School.

“I’ve spent the last decade enhancing my expertise and building connections to bring elite sports medicine care to Blount County – and this inaugural conference is just one step,” Boden said.

The one-day symposium covered topics such as concussions, injury prevention, training protocols, wearable technology and sports performance. It also included conversations with Nelson, Boden and KOC’s Dr. Greg Mathien, the 2025 SEC Team Physician of the Year for Orthopaedics.

The event was free to coaches, athletic directors and trainers. Coaches received in-service credit for attending, and the seminar also qualified for athletic trainers’ recertification credit.

KOC has a longstanding tradition of investing in medical education and community outreach. Events like this emphasize KOC’s role as a community leader in health education, outreach and service across the region.