Jackson Gilman, a native of Schwenksville, Pennsylvania, prefers Wawa over Sheetz, but has nonetheless endeared himself to Pitt soccer fans because of his consistent presence on the field. The senior defender and three-year captain has appeared in 72 of the 74 games that Pitt has played during his four years to date, and he has started in all but one of the contests he has played in.
Consistently logging 90 minutes is no easy feat, especially considering that Gilman is playing in one of the deepest, most physical conferences in all of men’s soccer year after year. Gilman credits the team’s off-season preparation as the secret to having so much stamina consistently.
“It comes back to all the work we do — in the summer, in the spring, when our season isn’t in season,” Gilman said. “The intensity in which we train prepares us for the 90-minute matches. I think when you look at the film and watch the games, there’s a lot of games where the other team’s players are cramping and taking breaks, and consistently, we are ready to run through a wall for 90 minutes.”
Figuratively running through a wall for 90 minutes might not sound appealing to most people, but Gilman is the type of player who actually seeks out and enjoys physical contact.
“I always love making blocks, making tackles,” Gilman said. “I’ve always really enjoyed putting my body on the line for the team.”
Gilman appreciates the trust that his teammates and coaches have placed in him to serve as a defensive leader for Pitt. The appreciation is reciprocated by head coach Jay Vidovich, who has benefited from Gilman’s leadership throughout his decorated four-year career.
“He’s been Mr. Dependable as a leader — we’ve been able to go to him for countless situations,” Vidovich said.
Behind every leader is a support system. Gilman credits the support of his family for helping him reach this point.
“It’s just in anything that I’ve wanted to set my mind out to do, they’ve been very supportive,” he said. “That’s made it really easy on me to take [everything] on at 115% knowing that they’re going to be there supporting my judgment.”
Gilman’s family supported his judgment when he stopped playing baseball in middle school to focus more on soccer. Gilman grew up playing baseball — another sport that gives players the ability to put their bodies on the line.
Gilman’s father, Steve, played baseball at the University of Rochester before transferring to UNC Asheville, so the collegiate athlete trend runs in the Gilman family. Baseball was a bit too slow for Gilman, so he has gone full steam ahead with soccer ever since.
A passion for soccer led Gilman to play in the Philadelphia Union’s Academy from 2016 to 2022. During his junior year of high school, he served as a captain for the U17 team, which ultimately led him to commit to the University of Pittsburgh.
“Building a program in the ACC to be ACC champions, to have NCAA champion aspirations, that’s something that drew me here,” Gilman said.
Gilman has made the “aspirations” that drew him to Pitt a reality. In his three full years at Pitt, Gilman has helped the Panthers reach three straight NCAA tournaments and ultimately win the 2024 ACC regular season championship.
Individually, Gilman has accumulated several accolades, such as earning 2022 and 2023 All-ACC Academic Team honors. Additionally, Gilman was named to the 2022 ACC All-Freshman Team and given Third Team All-ACC honors in 2023 and 2024.
But Gilman cares about more than just the accolades he earned here at Pitt — the captain hopes that he is remembered as a good teammate and person off the field.
“I would hope when my time here is done, that I can look back and say, I put my best foot forward and that my teammates appreciated their time that they spent with me, obviously on the field, but off the field, in the locker room, as a leader, as a teammate … I think that that’s gonna mean a whole lot more to me when I’m finished with my time here,” Gilman said.
Right now, Gilman is focused on finishing the season out strong and staying focused on the present moment. Gilman credits a former Pitt captain and current Pittsburgh Riverhounds player Jackson Wälti for this advice.
“He always said, ‘just make sure you enjoy all the little moments, because it’s going to be over before you know it.’ And he really was right. It really does fly by,” the senior said. “These last four seasons have seemed to fly by in the blink of an eye. So I’m just making sure [in] these last few games here, however long the season is, that I’m enjoying every moment of it and taking it all in, because it leaves you pretty fast.”
Gilman hopes to pass on this advice and his wisdom to younger players on the team and leave Pitt’s program better than he found it. According to Vidovich, Gilman has done that already.
“We’re really going to miss his personality, his competitiveness on the field, [and] his organizational ability,” Vidovich said. “It’s gonna be difficult to replace.”