Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball versus Wichita State on January 15, 2026 at 9 p.m.
9 p.m.
Men's Basketball
vs. Wichita State
Florida Atlantic University Athletics
Where Are They Now? - Brett Royster
3/7/2020 2:11:00 PM | Men's Basketball
BOCA RATON, Fla. – A McDonald's All-American nominee out of Arlington, Texas, Brett Royster earned scholarship offers from colleges across the country in 2007. But one stood out to the high-flying big man: Florida Atlantic University.
Â
"Once I got to go on my visit and see the school and visit the community, I just fell in love with it," Royster said. "I literally committed the day after my visit because I loved it so much."
Â
Dominating immediately at FAU, Royster gave fans good reason to reciprocate his love. Royster recorded 41 blocks – fourth most in program history – as a freshman in 2007-08
despite starting only seven games.Â
Â
Royster smashed the Owls' shot-blocking record with 73 as a sophomore, his natural talent and instincts beginning to blend with then-FAU coach Mike Jarvis' team concepts.
Â
"I started to feel like I could do more, and I started to notice the game slow down a little bit," Royster said of his defensive ability. "At that point, I just felt like I could make a big impact on the game in that way, and I just started to focus on that."
Â
That focus made driving to the lane against FAU a daunting proposition. Over his junior and senior seasons, Royster swatted three shots a game and earned back-to-back Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Year awards. He shattered both FAU's and the conference's all-time shot-blocking records with 301.
Â
After the 2010-11 season, Royster signed with the British Basketball League's Leicester Riders. Leicester offered him the chance to experience international basketball without adjusting to a new language.
Â
But the adjustment wasn't all easy. Royster arrived in England in the afternoon, practiced that night and played a game the next day – all while jet lagged from his eight-hour flight from the U.S.
Â
"It's one of those things you're thrown into and expected to be ready," Royster said, "and you're expected to be able to perform to the level they're expecting, (that's what) they're paying you for."
Â
Leicester coach Robert Paternostro, a fellow American, aided the transition. He had the organization secure housing and transportation for Royster, and even simplified the game plan initially to make him comfortable on the court. And that comfort level translated to Royster's play: In only 18.6 minutes per game, he averaged a team-high 1.5 blocks along with 6.4 points and 5.8 rebounds.
Â
Coming off that strong 2011-12 season, Royster left to play for the Ehingen Steeples in Germany. Royster thought playing there, in a more competitive league (proA), was the logical next step in his burgeoning pro basketball career.
 Â
But he never got the chance to see it through. After a few practices with the Steeples, Royster's knee "just couldn't hold up." His doctors told him he had "really bad" arthritis and it would only exacerbate if he kept playing.Â
Â
"I had reached a point where I had been working to get to, which was playing professionally, and my body just kind of said, 'No more,'" Royster said.
Â
Basketball "consumed" Royster since he was 12 years old, so he struggled to accept his playing career was over. Until shortly after, when he learned he was having a child with his soon-to-be wife April Turner, a fellow FAU grad.
Â
"I'm losing this thing that I thought I was supposed to do, and I worked to get to that point," Royster said. "And then finding out I'm having a kid kind of puts that in perspective of, 'This isn't the only thing you're supposed to do in your life. There's more to your life than this. This is just a part of it.'"
Â
Royster returned to Palm Beach County in 2014 and found another important part of his life: coaching. He worked with travel teams for a year then moved to the high school level for three, spending time at Boca Raton High and Olympic Heights.
Â
From the start of his coaching career, teaching kids the game was as comfortable to Royster as playing it. That's why he sees himself on the sidelines for the foreseeable future.
Â
"I believe that, ultimately, coaching is what I'm meant to do," said Royster, who is also a financial analyst. "I think I'm meant to do it as my permanent, (full-time) job. I love it. I love teaching the game. I love imparting the things I learned and the things that were taught to me. I love passing it down to the next generation of players."
Â
In April 2019, Royster and his family moved to Broomfield, Colorado, because Turner earned a job promotion there. The move also benefited Royster's professional career, as he became a varsity head coach for the first time at Two Roads Charter School.
Â
Royster's new job required patience. Most of his team never played organized basketball before, and since the school is so small, virtually all who tried out made varsity. The challenge of developing those players from the ground up, though, is one Royster embraced.
Â
"As the season goes on, seeing them develop and seeing their confidence grow and seeing them become more sure of themselves on the court, it's one of the greatest I have experienced in my involvement in the sport,"Â Royster said.
Â
The next step for Royster is college coaching, and he hopes to enter the ranks in the next year or two. Long-term, though, Royster envisions one "storybook ending," one overriding dream: coaching at FAU, the place he loved since seeing as a high school recruit and will "always be my home."
Â
"I have so many happy memories attached to my time (at FAU)," Royster said. "I think getting to come back and give back would eclipse every positive thing I had for those memories. I think getting to coach in that program, getting to work in that program, would eclipse everything else. It would be the happiest moment that I could have in terms of my time at FAU."
Â
Â
"Once I got to go on my visit and see the school and visit the community, I just fell in love with it," Royster said. "I literally committed the day after my visit because I loved it so much."
Â
Dominating immediately at FAU, Royster gave fans good reason to reciprocate his love. Royster recorded 41 blocks – fourth most in program history – as a freshman in 2007-08
despite starting only seven games. Â
Royster smashed the Owls' shot-blocking record with 73 as a sophomore, his natural talent and instincts beginning to blend with then-FAU coach Mike Jarvis' team concepts.
Â
"I started to feel like I could do more, and I started to notice the game slow down a little bit," Royster said of his defensive ability. "At that point, I just felt like I could make a big impact on the game in that way, and I just started to focus on that."
Â
That focus made driving to the lane against FAU a daunting proposition. Over his junior and senior seasons, Royster swatted three shots a game and earned back-to-back Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Year awards. He shattered both FAU's and the conference's all-time shot-blocking records with 301.
Â
After the 2010-11 season, Royster signed with the British Basketball League's Leicester Riders. Leicester offered him the chance to experience international basketball without adjusting to a new language.
Â
But the adjustment wasn't all easy. Royster arrived in England in the afternoon, practiced that night and played a game the next day – all while jet lagged from his eight-hour flight from the U.S.
Â
"It's one of those things you're thrown into and expected to be ready," Royster said, "and you're expected to be able to perform to the level they're expecting, (that's what) they're paying you for."
Â
Leicester coach Robert Paternostro, a fellow American, aided the transition. He had the organization secure housing and transportation for Royster, and even simplified the game plan initially to make him comfortable on the court. And that comfort level translated to Royster's play: In only 18.6 minutes per game, he averaged a team-high 1.5 blocks along with 6.4 points and 5.8 rebounds.
Â
Coming off that strong 2011-12 season, Royster left to play for the Ehingen Steeples in Germany. Royster thought playing there, in a more competitive league (proA), was the logical next step in his burgeoning pro basketball career.
 Â
But he never got the chance to see it through. After a few practices with the Steeples, Royster's knee "just couldn't hold up." His doctors told him he had "really bad" arthritis and it would only exacerbate if he kept playing.Â
Â
"I had reached a point where I had been working to get to, which was playing professionally, and my body just kind of said, 'No more,'" Royster said.
Â
Basketball "consumed" Royster since he was 12 years old, so he struggled to accept his playing career was over. Until shortly after, when he learned he was having a child with his soon-to-be wife April Turner, a fellow FAU grad.
Â
"I'm losing this thing that I thought I was supposed to do, and I worked to get to that point," Royster said. "And then finding out I'm having a kid kind of puts that in perspective of, 'This isn't the only thing you're supposed to do in your life. There's more to your life than this. This is just a part of it.'"
Â
Royster returned to Palm Beach County in 2014 and found another important part of his life: coaching. He worked with travel teams for a year then moved to the high school level for three, spending time at Boca Raton High and Olympic Heights.
Â
From the start of his coaching career, teaching kids the game was as comfortable to Royster as playing it. That's why he sees himself on the sidelines for the foreseeable future.
Â
"I believe that, ultimately, coaching is what I'm meant to do," said Royster, who is also a financial analyst. "I think I'm meant to do it as my permanent, (full-time) job. I love it. I love teaching the game. I love imparting the things I learned and the things that were taught to me. I love passing it down to the next generation of players."
Â
In April 2019, Royster and his family moved to Broomfield, Colorado, because Turner earned a job promotion there. The move also benefited Royster's professional career, as he became a varsity head coach for the first time at Two Roads Charter School.
Â
Royster's new job required patience. Most of his team never played organized basketball before, and since the school is so small, virtually all who tried out made varsity. The challenge of developing those players from the ground up, though, is one Royster embraced.
Â
"As the season goes on, seeing them develop and seeing their confidence grow and seeing them become more sure of themselves on the court, it's one of the greatest I have experienced in my involvement in the sport,"Â Royster said.
Â
The next step for Royster is college coaching, and he hopes to enter the ranks in the next year or two. Long-term, though, Royster envisions one "storybook ending," one overriding dream: coaching at FAU, the place he loved since seeing as a high school recruit and will "always be my home."
Â
"I have so many happy memories attached to my time (at FAU)," Royster said. "I think getting to come back and give back would eclipse every positive thing I had for those memories. I think getting to coach in that program, getting to work in that program, would eclipse everything else. It would be the happiest moment that I could have in terms of my time at FAU."
Â
Postgame Presser vs. Memphis (Devin Vanterpool and Kanaan Carlyle)
Sunday, January 11
Postgame Presser vs. Memphis (Head Coach John Jakus)
Sunday, January 11
Postgame Presser vs. UTSA
Wednesday, December 31
Weekly Presser w/ Head Coach John Jakus
Monday, December 29