Boomerang: Cam Fuller’s athletics journey brings him back to northeastern Wisconsin

Photo by Rachel Lukas.

Cam Fuller’s athletics journey has taken him from the golf greens of Door County, to courtside at the 2021 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament, to now overseeing nearly 600 student-athletes and coaches at St. Norbert College in De Pere, Wisconsin. 

Fuller – a 2008 graduate of Sevastopol school and three-time Packerland Conference Player of the Year as a standout golfer – continued his success on the links for the Division I UW-Green Bay Phoenix team as a four-year varsity letter winner in the Horizon League. 

After graduating from UW-GB in 2013 with a degree in business administration, Fuller returned to the Horizon League, this time as an intern in the Indianapolis office. Over the course of nearly eight years, he advanced to become the league’s assistant commissioner for competition, branding and sponsorship. 

In that role, Fuller served as the tournament manager for the 2021 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament, which went on after the COVID-19 pandemic canceled the 2020 tournament. For the first time in the tournament’s 82-year history, all games were held in one state: Indiana. And Fuller was instrumental in the tournament’s success.

He has since returned to northeastern Wisconsin after being named St. Norbert College’s director of athletics and physical education in 2021, and we caught up with him to talk about his new position. 

The following interview has been condensed and edited for space. 

Justin Skiba (JS): What are you enjoying about your new position? 

Cam Fuller (CF): For any individual to be successful, there must be a fit and a similar ethos. From the first conversation I had with the leadership team at St. Norbert College, I sensed a strong value alignment. 

I wake up every day and have an excitement that we have an opportunity to make a major impact on the lives of our student-athletes and position their experience in a way they will be proud to be a graduate of St. Norbert College. 

I saw this as a great opportunity to build on what so many great leaders did before me while planting roots in an area that is important to my wife, Kaylee, and I. My family is in the Sturgeon Bay area, and Kaylee’s family is in the Sheboygan area, so it has been a joy to be close to family and friends.  

JS: You had spent eight years at the Horizon League office in Indianapolis before coming to St. Norbert. You’ve gone from intern to assistant commissioner. Tell us about your progression.

CF: My experience at the Horizon League was remarkable, and I was fortunate to not only work with a great group of people, but develop lifelong friends. Jon LeCrone, and then later Julie Roe Lach, were fantastic commissioners who taught me the value of relationships and building a team. 

I was able to grow in an accelerated fashion and throughout my time at the Horizon League. I worked in nearly every facet of the office, which led to various growth opportunities, and those experiences positioned me for success in my role at St. Norbert College. 

JS: You served as the tournament manager for the 2021 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship. How did the COVID-19 pandemic affect your planning?

CF: One of the benefits of working in Indianapolis was the sense of community and how everyone wrapped their arms around events to ensure their success. The logistics of 68 teams playing in the midst of a global pandemic in one location took precision and a commitment to a robust set of safety protocols. 

Usually you have three to four years to plan for an event of this size. We had three months, so we made sure to utilize that time and use it wisely. We were hosting one of the largest events during a global pandemic, and we felt a responsibility to the NCAA that we pull it off. 

JS: How did your amateur career as a golfer guide your interest in pursuing a degree in sports management?

CF: I look back at my time at Sevastopol and UW-Green Bay as formative times in my life. I grew up in a strong household. My parents, Dale and Bobbi, and my brothers, Cory and Jason, taught me the value of working hard and being a good teammate. As the youngest of three boys, and having a father who coached girls’ basketball and a mother who coached youth tennis, I grew up around athletics. The values instilled in me at a young age have carried forward with me in my professional life and spurred my interest in sports management.

JS: What advice would you give a high school or college student who is interested in a career in the sports-management field?

CF: I would say the biggest thing for individuals is, don’t be afraid to put yourself out there and connect with others. If you can develop good connections, it is likely someone will be able to vouch for you when the time comes. 

When I graduated, I was ready to take a full-time job, but instead I took an internship. I would say the lion’s share of people who have progressed in the field know there is no shame in taking a graduate job and internship. You’ll learn what your strengths and interests are. There are so many areas in the sports field, and by taking the approach of learning what’s out there, you’ll be able to narrow in. During college, you don’t have to wait until the end. You have those three summers to find internships.