Pitt Athletics
Northwestern Heavily Pursuing Heather Lyke as Next AD
Just days before the start of the 2024 Pitt Panther football season, some potential major news concerning Pitt athletic director Heather Lyke.
A well-placed source tells Pittsburgh Sports Now that Northwestern University is in talks with and is heavily pursuing Lyke.
Northwestern has been searching for a new full-time athletic director since re-assigning Derrick Gragg, following the Pat Fitzgerald scandal.
This is a story to watch and take seriously considering Lyke is in the last year of her contract with Pitt.
Heather Lyke
Former Pitt chancellor Patrick Gallagher signed Lyke to an extension back in May of 2018 but with just months left on that deal, nothing has progressed with new Pitt chancellor Joan Gabel.
Lyke has a history with the Big Ten conference having spent 15 years at Ohio State and in the past year, has been rumored to be a candidate for the athletic director jobs at both Ohio State and Michigan State.
This potential departure would be a major hole for Pitt, but consider that Pat Narduzzi, Jeff Capel and Dan Fisher are all inked up to long-term deals.
One other note to this potential major story is that this same source is telling PSN that “people inside the university are worried that the threat of losing Heather is not being addressed by the chancellor.”
Once again, PSN is told that Lyke is very high on the priority list for Northwestern, and it would not be surprising if this situation is finalized one way or the other in the coming days.
Come on PITT, do the right thing and commit to Heather as our long-term AD. Heather has stabilized our athletics department and led to many successes.
Is Gabel intimidated by Heather?
Perhaps Gable is out of her element too..
Do everything you can to keep her.
Pitt looks like it’s going to do what Pitt does best when it comes to athletics and self sabotage. Hopefully Gabel doesn’t let Lyke walk, but if they do it’ll just be another step back in a long history taking steps back. And with everything going on in college athletics and in conference realignment Pitt can’t afford any regression.
Just when I think you can’t do anything dumber…you go and do this….
AND TOTALLY REDEEM YOURSELF!!
Northwestern would be a step down for her. It’s in the Mediocre 10 but they are the doormat of the conference. Stay at Pitt and finish what you started. Another opportunity is always around the corner with success. Pass…💰💰🤑🤑🙏🇺🇸
Jealous much.
Seems like this new Chancellor is asleep at the wheel.
I’m starting to think Joan is another Nordenberg. Some academics hate the jocks.
You’d think that someone that was a business professor would know what department really pays the bills for the University.
Yeah, admissions, UPMC, NIH and $8 billion in the bank. Athletics is probably a zero sum game. It brings TV exposure. The incoming class had a record 58,000 applications. I think Chancellor Gabel has her head screwed on properly.
Yeah, yeah UPMC is separate but look at the board to see how separate.
Let her go.
She has been looking for a return to the Big ??? for years. How many teams now? Still can’t count above 10.
Sadly, this may be another case of Pitt bungling in how it handles its athletic department. That they’ve done nothing to address an extension with her is insane.
Northwestern plays in a more financially viable conference, has a more willing alumni base to draw on donations, higher ranked in many academic programs, and is spending freely on campus facility upgrades. She will be able to hire away coaches in all sports from soccer to football of equal renown as she was able to at Pitt. Hard to imagine why she would stay unless Pitt steps up.