How Will Pitt Navigate the New Revenue-Sharing Era?

It’s July 1, 2025, and a new era of college athletics is underway for Pitt and programs across the country.

College athletic departments can now officially share revenue with their student athletes with the House vs. NCAA settlement going into effect weeks after its approval.

The initial cap for the 2025-26 season sits at $20.5 million and since Allen Greene took over as Pitt’s athletic director, he has been working to put the Panthers in position to compete in these new times.

Pittsburgh Sports Now has been working to get a better understanding of how Pitt is leaning into the revenue-sharing era.

While the cap sits at the aforementioned number, it doesn’t mean that departments have to max out. So, how is Pitt going to navigate that number?

That’s been an important question brought up by fans, recruits and families of recruits. Is Pitt all in on the revenue sharing?

All indications are that Pitt will go all in on the $20.5 million number.

Led by Greene and chancellor Joan Gabel, Pitt is invested in revenue sharing to compete at the highest possible level both in the Atlantic Coast Conference and nationally.

“Pitt athletics is definitely ready for this,” Greene said in an interview on 93.7 The Fan in June. “Big kudos to the team and university administration. One of the things that is a huge benefit to us here at Pitt is the alignment between our board chair, our chancellor, myself and our chancellor’s team. We’ve been able to have very transparent conversations about how we are preparing for the eventual approval of this settlement, which occurred last night. We’ve been strategizing for six months and even beyond, but really robustly over the last six months. I couldn’t be more proud of the team for helping put us in a strong position moving forward.”

Pitt director of athletics Allen Greene with former quarterback Kenny Pickett. April 12, 2025 — Ed Thompson / PSN

Next, it’s a matter of taking those funds and allocating it towards the various varsity sports that Pitt sponsors.

Like many programs around the country, Pitt will most likely break down its revenue with 75 percent going to football, roughly 15 percent to men’s basketball, 5 percent to women’s basketball and other revenue generating sports such as volleyball and another 5 percent will be spread among the remaining programs in the department.

When looking at the football roster, there are specific positions that will demand the most money: Quarterback, wide receiver, edge rusher and left tackle. The percentages of revenue distribution from the professional game are largely being applied to the college game.

Ultimately, what does this mean for fans?

There will be more of an importance placed on the fans to help fund this new era of college athletics.

While donating to NIL collectives has some benefits, it was not a tax deductible contribution. Now, those who contribute to the University of Pittsburgh Department of Athletics is considered philanthropic and thus can be tax deductible.

Also, cutting any programs does not appear on the table for Pitt and while there is not a new revenue stream that comes with revenue sharing, Pitt is looking to maximize on every avenue possible from annual donations, memberships, ticket sales, merchandise sales and more.

There are still a lot of unknowns when it comes to this era of college athletics and more will be known as time goes on as programs navigate the the treacherous waters.