Leading figures from the Pittsburgh sports community and Pitt athletics came together to express messages of grief and appreciation for Dr. Freddie Fu, the pioneering orthopedic surgeon who passed away last weekend at the age of 70.

Pitt athletics announced updated COVID-19 regulations for spectators at on-campus sporting venues — the Petersen Sports Complex and the Fitzgerald Field House — last Tuesday afternoon.

Since its inception, the NCAA has held that college athletes cannot and will not be paid for their name, image or likeness. Athletes were ineligible to accept endorsements or receive payment for their performance — all to maintain the amateurism surrounding college athletics. But new rules and regulations regarding name, image and likeness benefits for college athletes will change this long-standing rule.

Many teams emerged gracefully from the COVID-19 pandemic, but few are equipped to renew their success this year. Volleyball and men’s soccer are poised for historic seasons, while baseball will need to reload before it is back to competing on a national stage.

Pitt Athletics alumni said they saw the athletic department bring attention to Black History Month this year for the first time in a significant way, but shared many concerns they hope the department will address in the future.

As Pitt Athletics has undergone changes in staff, facilities and athletes over the past 28 years, custodian Lance Aiken has remained.

Pitt fans are all too familiar with Pitt sports’ heartbreaking habit of dropping close losses and, conversely, the kind of alcohol that may help them forget about that heartbreak. But each of these sports offers their own experience, each different from their counterparts, and I’ve chosen alcoholic drinks to match.

Christian Spears, the deputy athletic director at Pitt, estimates Pitt Athletics stands to gain anywhere from $100,000 to $200,000 annually from alcohol sales when the Petersen Events Center can return to full capacity for home basketball games.

Pitt launched the Voting Matters campaign in an effort to register every single Pitt athlete to vote.

An ever-present face in Pitt’s athletic department, Borghetti leads media operations for the University’s 19 intercollegiate sports, publicizing the same programs he cheered for growing up.