Pitt athletic director Heather Lyke was one of three candidates to become the next AD at Northwestern, but ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported Wednesday night that Villanova’s Mark Jackson has emerged from a field of three candidates.
A deal between Jackson and Northwestern could be finalized soon, Thamel reported.
The Chicago Sun-Times reported Tuesday that Lyke, Jackson and former Washington Commanders president Jason Wright were the three “finalists” for the job.
Northwestern is seeking a replacement for Derrick Gragg, who was reassigned within the university in June. Jackson would be the third athletic director at the school since Jim Phillips left to become commissioner of the ACC in December, 2020.
Lyke’s contract with Pitt expires this year. Previously, her name was linked to athletic director positions at Michigan State, Ohio State and USC.
Former Pitt Chancellor Patrick D. Gallagher hired Lyke in 2017 to become the first female athletic director in school history. She replaced Scott Barnes, who left for the same position at Oregon State. Her contract was extended in 2018.
Lyke previously served as athletic director at Eastern Michigan and in several capacities in the Ohio State athletic department.
During her seven years at Pitt, Lyke has worked to secure funding for the $240 million Victory Heights project under construction on campus next door to the Petersen Events Center. It will serve 16 of Pitt’s 19 intercollegiate programs and include a 3,000-seat arena for gymnastics, volleyball and wrestling.
Victory Heights is expected to open in the fall of 2025.
Last year, the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics named Lyke a recipient of the Cushman & Wakefield AD of the Year Award.
Jerry DiPaola is a TribLive reporter covering Pitt athletics since 2011. A Pittsburgh native, he joined the Trib in 1993, first as a copy editor and page designer in the sports department and later as the Pittsburgh Steelers reporter from 1994-2004. He can be reached at jdipaola@triblive.com.