Alex Grumer never expected his career with Penn State men’s basketball to escalate this quickly.

The 22-year-old grew up playing basketball and always knew he wanted to stay involved with the sport in college. Upon arriving at Penn State, he made sure to get involved with the program in some capacity.

During his sophomore year, Grumer joined the men’s basketball team as a student manager during head coach Mike Rhoades’ first season with the team. What started as a student opportunity has since turned into a full-time role on Rhoades’ staff. 

After graduating with a degree in Agribusiness Management and a Smeal entrepreneurship certificate this past May, Rhoades created a position for Grumer on his operations staff. Ultimately, this allowed Grumer to continue working for the sport he loved growing up.

“I would love to stay at Penn State as long as I can,” Grumer said. “Penn State is where I came growing up. My dad went here, and my sister goes here. It’s a great school and the community.”

Grumer’s new role with men’s basketball looks significantly different from his days as student manager.

A major part of his role as assistant director of men’s basketball operations involves handling logistics around the players. This includes scheduling their classes and monitoring their credits and academic responsibilities. Grumer also helps ensure the players’ day-to-day schedules meet the demands of a Division I basketball program.

The attention to detail is a skill Grumer learned best by watching Rhoades and the rest of the coaching staff.

“The way he approaches everything is very professional,” Grumer said of Rhoades. “I’ve learned a lot from him to hopefully one day be the director of ops.”

For Grumer, the transition from student manager to staff has meant adjusting the way he interacts with the players.

As a manager, he was around the team as a fellow classmate and friend. Now, he has to approach those same relationships as a member of the coaching staff.

“The relationship with the players is a little different now that I’m not a manager. Those are guys I’d be going to class with, hanging out with, and that’s just not something you’re doing as a coach. That has been the biggest change I’ve seen,” said Grumer.

However, the shift has provided Grumer with an early lesson in what it takes to work in the world of college basketball. At just 22 years old, Grumer is already working full-time for a Division 1 program, where some of the players are older than him.

“I just turned 22 at the end of July, so I’m still super young,” Grumer said. “Which is awesome for my career. I’m just happy to be involved in this at such a young age.”

Grumer’s time with the program has also given him a perspective that he wishes more Penn State fans could experience.  

From the outside, a practice or game can seem like a culmination of what happens on the court. However, in reality, Grumer describes a much more methodical process.

“How hard the staff works every day, and how detail-oriented everything is; every detail matters. From the second they tie their shoes at their locker to the last huddle at the end of practice, everything is planned out, very detailed,” said Grumer.

Grumer’s degree has also helped him prepare for his new leadership role.

“To be a coach or a teacher or anything where you’re of importance in the business side of things, you need to be able to lead people, and I think my entrepreneurship classes definitely helped with that,” said Grumer.

Grumer’s journey to assistant director didn’t come without its share of sacrifices. He remembers days as a student manager when he would leave at 9 a.m and wouldn’t return home until 9 p.m. On game days, the demand was even higher, as warm-ups and other responsibilities kept the managers at Bryce Jordan Center for much of the day.

For students who hope to follow in his path, Grumer’s advice is simple: get involved and be willing to sacrifice time for success.

“Reach out and just get involved any way you can, whether that’s as a manager, as a camp counselor,” Grumer said. “The more you do, the better. I always like to say, ‘I got lucky,’ but you build your own luck with this.”

Grumer has already seen how that advice can pay off. Now, his sights are on helping Penn State reach the NCAA Tournament and continuing to learn about coaching from the staff around him.

“Making March Madness is at the top of the list,” Grumer said. “This team is very, very good, and I’m looking forward to seeing what we can do. But we definitely want to make March Madness and go further. I know we can do it.”