A big part of Austin Hudson's journey towards medical school was his dream to be a team physician.
It's what's made the last number of weeks with the Bolts an incredible experience.
Hudson, a current student at Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, recently spent three weeks with the organization to get an inside look at how things operate behind the scenes.
"The dream was always to be a team physician, that's what got me interested going into medical school in the first place," Hudson said. "So when this opportunity arose, it was hard to pass up."
Hudson was a 2026 participant in the NFL Diversity in Sports Medicine Pipeline Initiative, a program that was launched in 2022 with the goal of increasing the pipeline of diverse students interested in careers in sports medicine.
The initiative is a joint program of the NFL, NFL Physicians Society (NFLPS) and Professional Football Athletic Trainers Society (PFATS). Over time, the objective is to diversify NFL club medical staffs.
The Bolts were one of the eight participating teams when the program launched. It's become a program that Marco Zucconi, the Chargers Director of Player Health, Wellness & Performance Marco Zucconi, said the team looks forward to every year.
"Being part of this initiative over the last five years has been an excellent experience for us," Zucconi said. "We have been able to meet and help shape the experience with some excellent medical students from Charles R. Drew University and help pull the curtain open on what it takes to be a team physician in the NFL but also what it takes to function within a high functioning Sports Medicine Team."
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After getting introduced to how things operated, Hudson assisted the Bolts physicians primarily in practice.
The first-hand experience day in and day out gave him a new perspective on everything that's required around an NFL team.
"No. 1. was how much into the health and wellness and how much energy it requires to take care of players and professional athletes," Hudson said when asked about what he's learned. "It's one of those things you don't know until you experience it.
"The training staff is here every day, all day. Before the players get here, after the players leave," Hudson added. "They're here a lot trying to make sure the players are healthy and ready to play. I think what really changes is how to interact with people at this level and the expectations are. Those are two of the biggest things I took."
Zucconi praised Hudson for his time with the Chargers.
"Austin has done a great job of observing and taking in all the things that we try to do to provide a healthy and performance-based environment for our players on an individual level," Zucconi said. "He has put himself in a position to learn and get a feel for working with our whole team from athletic trainers and doctors to strength & conditioning coaches to sports dieticians.
"He has soaked it all in and hopefully gained some valuable insights as he continues through medical school," he added.
The experience was one that Hudson won't forget, and a lot of it will have to do with how beneficial it will be for him down the road.
"100 percent. This experience has been super beneficial," Hudson said. "Especially just getting your foot in the door. I think this definitely helped with that.
"Also just having the understanding of what the expectation is at this level in terms of practicing medicine," Hudson added. "I think that definitely clarified a lot."
