When he arrived at Penn State as a freshman, Brady Berger had never participated in cheer before.

However, when Berger discovered the spirit squad and spoke to former mic man Niko Marsh at the end of his first year on campus, he was immediately intrigued by the position.

As an extroverted kid, Berger kept an open mind when talking to Marsh. After that conversation, he emailed Penn State’s cheer coach and tried out for the program.

Now a junior, Berger is grateful he made the decision to do something he didn’t even know existed months prior.

“I came in here as a normal student and decided, ‘Hey, I want to try out for the mic man position.’ I tried out for the Penn State cheerleading team, and was very open to learning it, and then later on, tried out for the mic man role,” Berger said.

The decision to try out paid off, as Berger was accepted to the team as a walk-on, and he began practicing, competing, and cheering at the beginning of his sophomore year.

Throughout his first year on the team, Berger served as a mic man at a number of sporting events, including becoming the first-ever mic man at a Penn State men’s hockey game and women’s gymnastics meet.

This year, the supply chain and information systems major traveled across the country for Penn State football games, leading pep rallies and cheering on the field, which he called an honor and a privilege.

“There’s nothing I ever experienced like being the front line of the spirit here at Penn State and being the guy to really bridge the generational gap between our alumni and the student body,” Berger said. “I never thought I’d be in sports, but it’s really cool to be in a front-row spot.”

While Berger said traveling to places he’s never been for football games is an experience like no other, he’s grateful for the opportunities to cheer at other sports, too.

“It really gives you a love for each and every sport, if that’s going to women’s volleyball and following them with their national title run, or that’s going to wrestling, or a White Out atmosphere in Beaver Stadium. It really shows you the love for it. We have it really good here at Penn State with our spirit program.”

Aside from sports, Berger also graced the stage at THON to get the Bryce Jordan Center pumped ahead of the annual Pep Rally, but he did so without the energy he typically has.

Part of an independent dancer couple with a teammate, Berger paired being the pep rally mic man with dancing for 46 hours, a time he called an inspiration.

When he took the stage to speak to a sold-out arena, Berger had already been standing for nearly 30 hours, but said the Four Diamonds children kept him motivated, as he hid the fact that he was tired and “fighting demons.”

“Getting to do that big pep rally in front of everyone where you’re 30 hours in, and now you’re trying to hype the crowd up, even though you’re a little down in your spirits right now, but everything was really special,” Berger said. “It’s a bigger picture. We’re doing it for something that’s bigger than ourselves. We’re just so fortunate to be a small part of something that’s so massive here.”

Whether at THON, a football pep rally, or another sport, Berger has used his experiences as mic man to become a better overall person.

The high school track runner and soccer player once had no idea what joining the cheer team even meant, but now, it has developed him and his character greatly.

“It’s really put me all together. Just getting involved, public speaking, time managing, it really bettered me as a person, especially going out into the community, which is a big thing, and doing something bigger than yourself,” Berger said. “I’ll do the smallest thing that might not mean anything to me, but it might have made somebody’s day, and that’s why I do it at the end. So it’s really cool.”

As a senior next year, Berger hopes to see a Penn State football national championship while he continues his cheerleading career. The Bucks County native also hopes to dance at THON once again.

Following graduation, Berger will look to join the supply chain industry as his spirit career will come to an end. However, his love for Penn State will certainly not.

“Once I’m done at Penn State, I’ll hang up my shoes, be a proud Penn State alumni, really live the ‘We Are’ mentality, and bleed blue and white,” Berger said.