Kevin Grimmer first made his mark in local circles as a standout scholastic and college basketball player, and then transferred his skills into coaching. Now he is a hardworking administrator, helping the SUNY Institute of Technology athletic program make the leap from a two-year to a four-year school.

Grimmer, born on May 24, 1959, was blessed with good height. By fifth grade, he was able to play eighth-grade basketball for St. Peter's School in north Utica. At Notre Dame High School, illness and injuries curtailed his playing time on the freshman, junior varsity and varsity squads. Already close to 6-feet-6 inches tall, he played ball for the Catholic Youth Organization until getting his break at Notre Dame in 1976-1977, his senior year. He blossomed into a scrappy, go-for-broke center, earning a spot on the Central Oneida League first all-star team and setting a school record for career rebounds.

He also gained the notice of several Division III colleges, but he turned down a scholarship offer from Manhattan College to play for Hamilton College's Tom Murphy. Grimmer became a dominant four-year starter (although plagued by injuries), and was the team's most valuable player for two consecutive years, 1979-80 and 1980-81.

He was Hamilton's top scorer (895 points) and top rebounder (622) over his last two seasons. The senior co-captain became the Continentals' third all-time scorer (1,500 points), second all-time rebounder (1,197) and all-time leader in shots blocked (139). He topped off his career by getting named MVP in the ECAC Upstate, New York Division III Championships in 1981. He was also honored as a second team All-American by "Basketball Weekly," third team All-American by the National Association of Basketball Coaches, ECAC Co-Player of the Year and ECAC Upstate All-Star. As a 6-7 senior, he was the nation's fifth-leading Division III rebounder.

Grimmer then acquired a taste of foreign competition. He joined the West Bromwich Basketball Club of Birmingham, England for the 1981-82 season, and helped coach West Bromwich's 15-18 year-old junior team.

He joined SUNY College at Utica-Rome in 1984 as a part-time assistant basketball coach and intramural assistant. When he was hired fulltime in 1985 by athletic director Jim Klein, the Wildcats had just five varsity sports. Glimmer coached women's basketball from 1988-1994, compiling a 78-69 overall record, including a school record of 19- 7 in his second year. In the fall of 1994, he took over as head men's basketball coach. They finished in a first-place tie for the SUNY AC East Division title in 1997. In eight seasons under Grimmer, the men's team qualified for four league championships, despite a 76-123 overall record.

He was elevated to Director of Athletics and Recreation in 2001. In 2002, he stepped down as basketball coach to concentrate on supervising a 10-sport athletic program, but he returned to coaching in 2003-04. Meanwhile, his son, Nick, is following in his father's footsteps as a record-setting basketball player, first at Hamilton and now at SUNYIT.