In this day and age of NIL throughout college athletics, in order to really compete and be competitive long term, Pitt will need donors and alumni to step up.
That happened today for the Pitt Panthers as they received a major donation from an alumnus.
The Pitt athletic department announced on Friday that Rich ’97 and Tracey Maniskas made a $1 million contribution to the Pitt Football Championship Fund and the Student Athlete Success Fund.
“Pitt Football always holds a special place in my heart. I want nothing more than to see Pitt Football reach the highest level of success in college football,” said Maniskas. “It is my belief that gifts like this will help (the program) succeed in achieving the goal of winning another championship.”
“For nearly 30 years, dating back to his days as a student assistant for our football equipment staff, Rich Maniskas has been a proud Pitt Panther,” said Pat Narduzzi. “This incredibly generous gift is the latest example of his pride and commitment to our football program. On behalf of our players, coaches, and staff, I want to thank Rich and his wife Tracey for their belief and support of our championship goals, on and off the field.”
In a statement released by Pitt, this gift from the Maniskas family will help with upcoming locker room renovations and weight room expansion projects at Pitt Football’s training facility.
“On behalf of our entire department, I want to thank Rich and Tracey for their tremendous passion, investment, and vision for Pitt Athletics,” said Pitt Athletic Director Heather Lyke. “They share our aspiration for comprehensive excellence and want the Pitt student-athlete experience to be the finest in all of college athletics. Their incredible support has been vital to our rise in the ACC and nationally and inspires us to even greater heights in the future. We are so grateful for their belief in Pitt Athletics and having teammates like Rich and Tracey make our work together meaningful and impactful.”
This isn’t the first time that the Maniskas family has contributed to Pitt Athletics, as back in 2020, they made a generous contribution to the Victory Heights Project.
Maniskas graduated from Pitt with his undergraduate degree in Political Science and his daughter, Becca, is currently a senior at Pitt.
Awesome
If I won the powerball the first call I would make is to Lyke asking: how much will it take for Cignetti to go away and never return?
Indeed!
Let me take this opportunity to thank you in advance. H2P
Thank you Rich and Tracey.
So great full for your generous commitment. All Pitt fans appreciate you.