UTEP Vice President/Director of Athletics Jim Senter announced on May 2, 2025, the hire of C.J. Potter as the department’s Assistant Athletic Director for Sports Medicine.
Potter came to UTEP from Prairie View A&M University, where he was the Assistant Athletic Director for Sports Performance for the last eight years. Potter served as Director of Sports Medicine for the previous seven years. Overall, the veteran of college athletics brings over 20 years of experience in the field.
Potter completed his sixth year as Assistant Athletic Director of Sports Performance after serving the previous eight years as Director of Sports Medicine for Prairie View A&M University. His responsibilities included overseeing the health and welfare of over 350 student-athletes who participate in intercollegiate athletics at Prairie View A&M.
Additionally, he also provided daily coverage for the football, women’s basketball, baseball, men's & women's track & field, and both golf teams. He oversaw a staff of five full-time certified athletic trainers, three strength and conditioning coaches, and a host of athletic training student aides.
Potter began on “The Hill” in 2010 and expanded the services provided to the student-athletes since then. He was instrumental in developing a working sponsorship with Houston Methodist Hospital - Willbrook and its physicians, which serves PVAMU with a multi-year agreement that includes access to the same health services as the NFL’s Houston Texans and MLB’s Houston Astros. Potter also expanded the athletic relationship with Pepsi, making Gatorade the official sports drink of the Prairie View A&M Panthers.
Potter graduated from Canton McKinley Senior High School in Canton, Ohio, and worked as an athletic training student while earning his bachelor’s degree from The Ohio State University in 2002. He was the head athletic trainer for his high school Alma mater for four years while working through the Aultman Health Foundation before obtaining his master’s degree in kinesiology from the University of Toledo. After leaving Toledo, Potter worked for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League before finding his way to “The Hill”.
Potter is a member of the National Athletic Trainers Association and is nationally certified through the Board of Certification as a certified athletic trainer as well as a Texas state-licensed athletic trainer. He has also received his certification in FMS and is fully trained in dry needling.
