Alabama sports-medicine icon Dr. James R. Andrews has expanded his athlete-safety footprint with the acquisition of Walters, Inc., a consulting firm founded by National Athletic Trainers’ Association Hall of Famer Dr. Rod Walters.

The deal was announced by Andrews Athlete. Originally co-founded by world-renowned orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews and Chad C. Henderson, CEO and Founder of Catalyst Healthspan Enterprises, in partnership with Doug and William Sellers, Andrews Athlete is set for a major expansion.

Walters will join Andrews Athlete as National Director of Athlete Safety, bringing to the role a track record of high-profile, independent reviews that helped reset national standards for emergency action planning and accountability in sports.

His past work includes investigations into the 2018 death of Maryland football player Jordan McNair, the 2019 death of Garden City Community College football player Braeden Bradforth, and Tufts University’s 2024 men’s lacrosse rhabdomyolysis cluster.

“Rod Walters has defined what best-in-class emergency preparedness looks like in athletics,” said Doug Sellers, CEO of Andrews Athlete.

“Bringing Walters, Inc. under the Andrews Athlete umbrella – and surrounding that foundation with subject matter experts like Ron Courson, Executive Associate Athletic Director of Health & Performance at the University of Georgia – allows us to scale unmatched expertise across leagues and institutions, ensuring athletes and staff are ready for the moments that matter most.”

“My life’s work has been focused on protecting athletes and helping them to prevent injury, and if an injury were to occur, have the athlete return to play safely and quickly. This next chapter is about building systems and support that go beyond clinical care – making sure every program, from youth sports to professional teams, has the tools they need to keep athletes safe,” Andrews added. 

Andrews, a member of the Alabama Business Hall of Fame and longtime leader of Andrews Sports Medicine & Orthopaedic Center and the American Sports Medicine Institute (ASMI) in Birmingham, said the move is about building systems that go “beyond clinical care” so programs from youth leagues to the pros are prepared for emergencies.

Alabama has a large and visible athletics ecosystem that increasingly emphasizes emergency readiness — heat-illness protocols, sudden-cardiac-arrest response, and hands-on rehearsal of Emergency Action Plans. ASMI and Andrews Sports Medicine already partner locally on large-scale pre-participation physicals for  student-athletes each spring; Andrews Athlete’s addition of Walters, Inc. positions the Andrews network to expand training, audits, and compliance reviews statewide.

Although he announced his retirement from active surgical practice in 2024, Andrews remains one of the most influential figures in sports medicine and continues to guide branded Andrews entities that operate in Alabama and across the Gulf South. His Birmingham-based organizations (Andrews Sports Medicine and ASMI) anchor a national network that includes the Andrews Institute in nearby Gulf Breeze, Florida.

“I am excited to partner with such a recognized brand as Andrews Athlete. The ability to continue to offer our services on an expanded platform excites me,” Dr. Walters said.

As the sister company to Andrews Medicine, Andrews Athlete extends Dr. Andrews’ legacy beyond healthcare delivery and into the structure of athletic departments themselves.

Both organizations share the “Andrews Way” – the belief that every athlete, from youth to professional, deserves exceptional care.