Islander at Buffalo Bills training camp

Maybe Marshawn Lynch will need an ankle taped. Perhaps Terrell Owens will require treatment for an aching muscle.

Whatever tasks are thrown Joe McDevitt's way this summer, he knows he will be better prepared for a career in sports medicine when he returns for his senior year at Lander University in September.

McDevitt, a former three-sport athlete at Hilton Head Christian Academy, is working as a student athletic training intern this summer at Buffalo Bills training camp, which opens today at St. John Fisher College in Rochester, N.Y. And though McDevitt doesn't know exactly what his summer workload will entail, he knows it will be a valuable experience.

"I know I will learn a lot, and I will see a lot of high-tech rehabilitation equipment and stuff that I wouldn't see at Lander," said McDevitt, who is majoring in athletic training and exercise studies at Lander. "Just all the different aspects of the NFL and working with professional football players. I know I will learn a lot and see a lot of very interesting things."

McDevitt is one of seven paid student interns working with the Bills' training staff from today's start of training camp through the team's five preseason games. His work actually began Monday, as the training staff began to prepare for the start of camp, but things will ratchet up when practice begins today. Working under four certified athletic trainers, McDevitt expects to help with pre-practice setup, making sure the players get plenty of fluid during practice and assisting players with taping and bracing, as well as treatments and injury rehabilitation.

But he's ready for whatever other jobs are sent his way, too.

"They make sure that we get a lot of hands-on opportunities, because that's the best way to learn," McDevitt said. "It's not really just sitting and watching. It's pretty pro-active."

McDevitt ended up in Buffalo after sending his resume and cover letter to all 32 NFL teams in January in hopes of landing a summer internship. He heard back from about 20 teams, but most of the responses were to let him know no positions were available. In fact, his first response from the Bills was along those lines, but the team called back about three weeks later to let him know it had an opening. After a call to the head trainer at Lander and a phone interview with McDevitt, the Bills offered the job.

"I was not expecting to hear from Buffalo again," McDevitt said. "But I said, 'Heck, yeah.' "

McDevitt has gained a wealth of experience at Lander, racking up more than 700 hours of hands-on clinical experience working with various teams and camps at the school, but his only football experience was a week working with players at the Oasis Shrine Classic all-star football game in Charlotte last November.

So he is looking forward to the chance to expand his knowledge base, and perhaps open the door to another internship opportunity with an NFL team next summer or next season. If that doesn't happen, he plans to pursue a master's degree in sports medicine.

But either way, McDevitt's summer will end with an abundance of new experiences -- and a new favorite football team.

"Well, my favorite team now is Buffalo," McDevitt said with a laugh. "I was a big Atlanta Falcons fan -- I still am -- but I'm also a Buffalo fan now. I've got an NFC team and an AFC team now."