University of Pittsburgh Athletics
Mark May to Represent Pitt at ACC’s “Night of Legends”
9/27/2018 2:00:00 PM | Football
PITTSBURGH—Iconic Pitt offensive tackle Mark May will represent the Panthers at the Atlantic Coast Conference's 2018 Night of Legends, the ACC has announced.
May will be one of 14 honorees recognized during the ACC Night of Legends presented by the Charlotte Sports Foundation at the Charlotte Convention Center, on Friday, Nov. 30, and during the on-field pregame festivities at the 14th annual Dr Pepper ACC Football Championship Game, set for the evening of Saturday, Dec. 1, at Charlotte's Bank of America Stadium.
The additional honorees for this year's event are Boston College's Mathias Kiwanuka, Clemson's Brian Dawkins, Duke's Steve Spurrier, Florida State's Bobby Bowden, Georgia Tech's Joshua Nesbitt, Louisville's Roman Oben, Miami's Ed Reed, North Carolina's Ron Rusnak, NC State's Mario Williams, Syracuse's Don McPherson, Virginia's Herman Moore, Virginia Tech's Eddie Royal and Wake Forest's Steve Justice.
Nicknamed "May Day" for the distress he would cause defensive tackles, the Oneonta, N.Y., native was a member of perhaps the greatest recruiting class in Pitt history in 1977, joining such standouts as Hugh Green, Rickey Jackson, Russ Grimm and Greg Meisner. May and his teammates went on to lead the Panthers to a four-year record of 39-8-1, including four bowl games and three Top 10 finishes.
In his junior and senior seasons, both 11-1 Pitt teams, May did not allow a single sack.
"There were games when my uniform never got dirty," said quarterback Dan Marino of May and his offensive line teammates. "There were games when I never hit the ground. That's incredible."
In 1979, May went up against two All-American defensive tackles (Penn State's Bruce Clark and Washington's Doug Martin) and held them to one tackle apiece in Pitt victories. As a senior in 1980, May graded out over 90 percent on running plays.
"His size, speed, agility and intelligence are unbelievable," said Joe Moore, the Panthers' famed offensive line coach from 1977-85. "Add to that his desire to excel, and you understand why he's a great one."
His first start was in the 1977 Gator Bowl at the end of his freshman campaign. That night, May helped the Panthers cruise to a 34-3 demolition of Clemson as Pitt rolled up a Gator Bowl record 566 total yards.
Pitt made bowl appearances in each of May's four seasons, punctuated by a 37-9 victory over South Carolina in the 1980 Gator Bowl. The Panthers finished second in the Associated Press and United Press International polls. The New York Times computer poll, however, ranked Pitt the best team in the country after that season.
Upon receiving the 1980 Outland Trophy as the nation's top interior lineman, May told the Pittsburgh Press he wanted to "cut it up and share it with my teammates and my coaches."
May was a consensus All-America selection as a senior and was selected in the first round of the 1981 NFL Draft, 20th overall, by the Washington Redskins. He helped the Redskins to three Super Bowls (1982, 1983 and 1987), including world championships in '82 and '87. May was selected to play in the Pro Bowl following the 1988 season. That year, he gave up just one sack and was the only Washington offensive player to start every game.
May's career with the Redskins spanned from 1981-90. He played for the San Diego Chargers in 1991 and Phoenix Cardinals in 1992-93.
Upon retiring from the NFL, May embarked on a highly successful broadcasting career, working for such national outlets as ESPN, CBS and TNT. He broke into broadcasting in 1994 when he joined play-by-play announcer Bill Hillgrove for Pitt radio broadcasts after longtime color man Johnny Sauer retired.
May's No. 73 jersey was retired by Pitt in 2001. He was enshrined into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2005.
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May will be one of 14 honorees recognized during the ACC Night of Legends presented by the Charlotte Sports Foundation at the Charlotte Convention Center, on Friday, Nov. 30, and during the on-field pregame festivities at the 14th annual Dr Pepper ACC Football Championship Game, set for the evening of Saturday, Dec. 1, at Charlotte's Bank of America Stadium.
The additional honorees for this year's event are Boston College's Mathias Kiwanuka, Clemson's Brian Dawkins, Duke's Steve Spurrier, Florida State's Bobby Bowden, Georgia Tech's Joshua Nesbitt, Louisville's Roman Oben, Miami's Ed Reed, North Carolina's Ron Rusnak, NC State's Mario Williams, Syracuse's Don McPherson, Virginia's Herman Moore, Virginia Tech's Eddie Royal and Wake Forest's Steve Justice.
Nicknamed "May Day" for the distress he would cause defensive tackles, the Oneonta, N.Y., native was a member of perhaps the greatest recruiting class in Pitt history in 1977, joining such standouts as Hugh Green, Rickey Jackson, Russ Grimm and Greg Meisner. May and his teammates went on to lead the Panthers to a four-year record of 39-8-1, including four bowl games and three Top 10 finishes.
In his junior and senior seasons, both 11-1 Pitt teams, May did not allow a single sack.
"There were games when my uniform never got dirty," said quarterback Dan Marino of May and his offensive line teammates. "There were games when I never hit the ground. That's incredible."
In 1979, May went up against two All-American defensive tackles (Penn State's Bruce Clark and Washington's Doug Martin) and held them to one tackle apiece in Pitt victories. As a senior in 1980, May graded out over 90 percent on running plays.
"His size, speed, agility and intelligence are unbelievable," said Joe Moore, the Panthers' famed offensive line coach from 1977-85. "Add to that his desire to excel, and you understand why he's a great one."
His first start was in the 1977 Gator Bowl at the end of his freshman campaign. That night, May helped the Panthers cruise to a 34-3 demolition of Clemson as Pitt rolled up a Gator Bowl record 566 total yards.
Pitt made bowl appearances in each of May's four seasons, punctuated by a 37-9 victory over South Carolina in the 1980 Gator Bowl. The Panthers finished second in the Associated Press and United Press International polls. The New York Times computer poll, however, ranked Pitt the best team in the country after that season.
Upon receiving the 1980 Outland Trophy as the nation's top interior lineman, May told the Pittsburgh Press he wanted to "cut it up and share it with my teammates and my coaches."
May was a consensus All-America selection as a senior and was selected in the first round of the 1981 NFL Draft, 20th overall, by the Washington Redskins. He helped the Redskins to three Super Bowls (1982, 1983 and 1987), including world championships in '82 and '87. May was selected to play in the Pro Bowl following the 1988 season. That year, he gave up just one sack and was the only Washington offensive player to start every game.
May's career with the Redskins spanned from 1981-90. He played for the San Diego Chargers in 1991 and Phoenix Cardinals in 1992-93.
Upon retiring from the NFL, May embarked on a highly successful broadcasting career, working for such national outlets as ESPN, CBS and TNT. He broke into broadcasting in 1994 when he joined play-by-play announcer Bill Hillgrove for Pitt radio broadcasts after longtime color man Johnny Sauer retired.
May's No. 73 jersey was retired by Pitt in 2001. He was enshrined into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2005.
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