As an athletic trainer for the University of Alabama, Jeff Allen saw a problem with the way athletes were evaluated during games. The team could either choose to take the athlete back into the locker room and take up valuable game time for an issue that might not need full evaluation, or the athlete could be examined on the sideline without an easy way to shield the body from the public or the other team. Working with engineering students Jared Cassity, Jared Porteous, Christian Parris, and Patrick Powell a portable tent now called the SidelinER was developed to give privacy on the sidelines.