Pitt Reveals 2024 Hall of Fame Class

The 2024 Pitt Panthers Hall of Fame class is headlined by the best cornerback in football history.

Sep 18, 2004; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Panthers cornerback Darrelle Revis (25) in action / Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

PITTSBURGH -- The Pitt Panthers have revealed their 2024 athletics Hall of Fame class and it is headlined by some heavy hitters from the worlds of professional football, broadcasting and more.

The latest crop of Panthers that will be inducted into the Pitt Athletics Hall of Fame includes DeJaun Blair, Bill Hillgrove, Dick Groat, Amy Jackson, Brianna Kiesel, George McLaren, Jamie Pelusi, Darrelle Revis, Al Romano and Stevel Lewis.

Perhaps the biggest name on that list is Revis, an all-league cornerback during his days in the Big East and the NFL. A native of nearby Aliquippa, Pennsylvania, he earned Freshman All-America status while aiding the Panthers in pursuit of a Big East title and Fiesta Bowl berth, the school's first BCS bid in history. He scored five touchdowns at Pitt - three on interceptions and two via punt returns, the most memorable of which was a 73-yard punt return score against West Virginia that was selected ESPN's 2006 "College Football Play of the Year." The eventual first-round pick of the New York Jets was a seven-time Pro Bowler and four-time first team All-Pro selection and Super Bowl Champion with the New England Patriots. In 2023, he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. 

Joining Revis is the incomparable broadcasting duo of Bill Hillgrove and Dick Groat. Groat, who passed last summer at the age of 92 and left behind a massive legacy as a college All-American in baseball and basketball, United States Army veteran, No. 3 overall pick in professional basketball, eight-time MLB All-Star, two-time World Series Champion and 1960 MVP. He shared the sideline with Hillgrove calling Pitt basketball games for 40 years before his retirement in 2019. Hillgrove is entering his 54th season calling Pitt football games on the radio and he and Groat will be the first Pitt Hall of Fame inductees to not have coached or played for the Panthers.

A pair of legends from the hardwood will also grace this class - Dejuan Blair and Brianna Kiesel. Blair, a Hill District native, became one of the faces of Pitt men's basketball's golden era. He averaged 15.7 points and 12.3 rebounds per game during his final collegiate season, as the Panthers ran up a 31-5 record and reached the Elite Eight of the 2009 NCAA Tournament. That season he also became the Panthers' first All-American in 50 years and in 2008 he led Pitt to the Big East tournament title.

Kisesel, meanwhile, is the only player in Pitt women's basketball player to total at least 1,500 points, 500 rebounds and 400 assists in a career. She led the Panthers in scoring and assists for each of her four seasons in Pittsburgh and in her senior season, led Pitt to the NCAA Tournament, a height the program hasn't reached since. That season, Kiesel earned first-team All-ACC and all-league defensive team distinction before becoming just the second Pitt player ever selected in the WNBA Draft.

Pitt will honor another former All-American football player in fullback George McLaren, who played under the legendary Glenn "Pop" Warner. He held the school record for longest run for 100 years and went 30-1 over his career as a Panther and won a national championship. He was inducted to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1965.

Al Romano, another national champion-winning Panther, will be included in this class as well. Playing under Johnny Majors as a member of his first recruiting class, Romano led a dominant defenive front at the nose tackle position and was named a consensus All-American and Outland Trophy finalist in 1976, when the Panthers last won a national title.

Joining some standouts from football and basketball is swimmer Amy Jackson, a former four-time All-American honoree. She earned that distinction in an astonishing 20 events - the 50-yard butterfly (twice), 100-yard butterfly (four), 200-yard butterfly (once), 100-yard freestyle (twice), 200-yard freestyle (twice), 200-yard free relay (once), 400-yard free relay (four), 800-yard free relay (three), and 400-yard medley relay (once). She joins Tony Dorsett and fellow swimmers Kathy Stetler and Suzanne Pulley as the only Pitt athletes to earn four All-American honors over their careers.

Representing women's soccer will be Jamie Pelusi, one of the best goal-keepers in program history. She ended her tenure at Pitt as the program's all-time leader in saves (456), save percentage (.786), goals against average (1.75), shutouts (13) and wins (19) and still ranks among the top four in many of those categories. Pelusi was a two-time All-Big East honoree and the conference's 2004 Goalkeeper of the Year.

Rounding out the list of honorees is long-time track and field coach Steve Lewis. The list of athletes he's coaches during hsi almost two decade-long tenure includes two-time Olympic gold medalist Roger Kingdom, four-time NCAA champion Lee McRae, two-time NCAA champion Najuma Fletcher and seven-time NCAA champion Trecia-Kaye Smith. Women's track and field captured third place at the 1998 NCAA Indoor Championships and five of his Pitt teams won Big East team titles.

This class of distinguished Pitt athletes, coaches and broadcasters will be honored during homecoming weekend this fall. September 13 - the night prior to Pitt football's marquee contest at Acrisure Stadium against West Virginia - has been set as the date for the induction ceremony at the Petersen Events Center.

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