Lamar University Athletics

Bobby Kummer brings nearly 30 years of NCAA Division I coaching experience with him as he enters his fifth season on the LU staff. During the 2016 offseason, Kummer was promoted to associate head coach, and has been with head coach Tic Price since he became the Cardinals full-time head coach. 

In just four seasons, Kummer has helped the Cardinals turn the corner from a Southland bottom feeder to a team eyeing a conference title. After winning a total of seven games in the two seasons combined prior to his arrival, Kummer has helped Price build a team that has now recorded back-to-back 19-win seasons and advance to the past two CollegeInsider.com Tournaments.    

The Cards’ recent sucess should come as no surprise to LU fans. During his first season on campus, Kummer helped coach LU to one of the nation’s best single-season turnarounds. After a dismal 2013-14 campaign, LU posted an 11-game turnaround with a 15-15 record. The 15-win campaign more than doubled the team’s overall and conference win total from the two previous seasons. 

Kummer comes to Beaumont after spending the previous four seasons as an assistant at Appalachian State, including the last three as associate head coach.

Known as a tireless worker on the court and recruiting trail, Kummer has left a paper trail of success in his wake. During his career, Kummer has helped coach 21 all-conference selections, including three all-freshman team picks, two conference players of the year, two defensive players of the year, two freshmen of the year and two newcomers of the year. He was instrumental in signing five top-20 recruiting classes of which 38 players have gone on to sign professional contracts, including six who played in the NBA.

Kummer’s work on the recruiting trail hasn’t just produced individual honors. He has worked with seven teams that have advanced to the postseason, including three trips to the NCAA Championships.

Kummer’s coaching career began in 1996 at his alma mater where he was hired by former UNC-Charlotte standout, Melvin Watkins. During a two-year stretch, the 49ers brought in a top-10 recruiting class (Bob Gibbons All-Star Sports) and made two NCAA Championship appearances. Following the 1997-98 season, Kummer followed Watkins to College Station as an assistant at Texas A&M.

During his time with the Aggies, Kummer was able to keep some of the Lone Star State’s best talent within its borders. The Aggies’ 1999 and 2000 signing classes were ranked in the top 20 by various publications, and produced the eventual Big 12 Freshman of the Year (Bemard King) and a newcomer of the year. King would close out his Aggie career as the school’s all-time leading scorer.
 
Following the 2003-04 season, Kummer returned to his alma mater where he spent the next six seasons. During his second stop in Charlotte, the 49ers made three postseason appearances, had 10 all-conference selections, and 17 players who went on to sign professional contracts.
 
A two-time team captain, Kummer guided the 49ers to a 1995 Metro Conference title, and a trip to the 1995 NCAA Championships. He received his bachelor’s degree from Charlotte in 1996. He is married to the former Nicole David.