Note: The following appears in the NC State football gameday program. My mom and dad came to the Upstate for the 1992 ACC Baseball Tournament in nearby Greenville. On the way from the parking lot to the stadium on Saturday afternoon, my dad tripped on a rock, fell on his left arm and broke it. What a way to start a vacation. But fortunately, the Clemson Family came to the rescue. When my dad made it to the stadium in some real pain, I sought out Clemson Athletic Trainer Fred Hoover. “Doc” immediately ran some arm movement tests he had probably done on 1,000 Clemson student-athletes over his 30 years (at the time) in charge of the athletic training needs. He said we needed an X-ray and guided us through the entire process. That process included going to see Dr. Larry Bowman, who was early in his Clemson career as the team orthopedic surgeon. Both men could not have been nicer to my dad, who had never broken a bone in his body. Hoover checked on my dad the entire week he was at Clems
Clemson, S.C. Former Clemson Athletic Trainer Fred Hoover, regarded as the Father of Sports Medicine in South Carolina, passed away Monday evening at his home in Clemson, SC at the age of 92.According to his son, Brian Hoover, it is believed that he watched the Clemson vs. Georgia Tech football game Monday evening, then passed away shortly thereafter.Hired by Clemson Head Football Coach and Athletic Director Frank Howard in 1959, Hoover served as Clemson’s top Athletic Trainer for 40 years. Hoover was inducted into the state of South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame this past May, one of many honors for the Florida State graduate. Hoover was enshrined in the Citizens Savings-Helms Athletic Foundation Hall of Fame in 1981. In 1982 he was inducted into the Clemson Athletic Hall of Fame. He worked another 16 years for the school after his induction. He continued to work for the Clemson Athletic Department until recent years on a part-time basis as a liaison with the opposing team
Information from this release was compiled by the SC Hall of Fame (Contact: Tony Ciuffo, 843-819-1139) Longtime Clemson athletic trainer Fred Hoover highlights the four-member South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame’s induction class of 2022. FULL RELEASE Hoover was hired by legendary coach Frank Howard, and served as trainer of the Clemson football team for 40 years (1959-98) and began working the sidelines seven years prior to the existence of Howard’s Rock. Hoover worked 446 consecutive football games and he was estimated to have supervised 4,500 Clemson football practices. He worked with seven head coaches, 11 ACC championship teams, 16 bowl teams, 38 All-Americans, 16 NFL All-Pro players and first round picks and 110 future NFL players. He ran down the hill 207 times, falling just once. Hoover has held just about every administrative post with the National Athletic Trainers Association, including Chairman of the Board. In 1981, he was enshrined in the Citizens Savings-Helms Athle