Copyright Salt Lake City Deseret News
NEW YORK CITY — Not long after Peter Pilling settled into his role as the athletic director at Columbia University, he sat in a cabinet meeting with then-President Lee C. Bollinger, surrounded by people who are respected experts and leaders in their various fields of endeavor. Pilling looked around and smiled. “I’m not worthy to be in this room,” he thought. Pilling has been the AD at Columbia for more than 10 years now, overseeing the 31 sports that compete for, and represent, the private Ivy League research university in New York City. During that decade, the Lions have captured seven national championships, 14 national individual championships, 34 Ivy League team titles and 88 Ivy League/conference individual championships. For much of his life, Pilling dreamed of being an athletic director. The BYU graduate, Latter-day Saint and former BYU senior associate athletic director thought he might land the BYU AD job in 2005. That’s when he was a finalist for that position, which instead went to Tom Holmoe, who recently retired after a 20-year tenure. But Pilling kept learning, kept working and kept his dream alive. Eventually, years later, he turned that disappointment into an AD position that he treasures. He works at one of the most prominent universities in the country and lives with his wife, Deanna, in an apartment in New York City, where he walks to campus every day. “We’ve been here for over 10 years and absolutely love it. It’s a remarkable institution, it’s an incredible city,” he said. “I feel very blessed to be here and play a role in the lives of the student-athletes we interact with.” Though Pilling wanted to be an AD, he wasn’t content to be an AD just anywhere. “During a pivotal time in graduate school I determined my ultimate goal was to be an athletic director,” Pilling said. “I wanted to serve as an AD at a university where you could succeed competitively while assisting student-athletes holistically.” Pilling, 66, is a West Coast guy that’s carved out his own path and found a home on the East Coast — at Columbia and in New York City. “He’s been around some really good people that gave him good insight and direction,” Holmoe said. “He’s had some really good mentors in his career and he’s been a mentor for many individuals. He’s had a really impressive career. I think a lot of him. He’s a good friend of mine.” Holmoe said his time with Pilling at BYU proved invaluable. “In the world of athletics, you don’t sit around waiting for the perfect time to make a decision. That’s one of the things that I saw and learned from him. When the tides are turning, you’ve got to change,” Holmoe said. “In the world of college athletics, things go at the speed of light compared to some aspects on campus. “I learned some things from Peter because he had been on a couple of different campuses and they had done things differently,” he continued. “So when he came to BYU, it wasn’t like, this is just the way because it’s always been done this way at BYU. He had a number of really good strategies that we incorporated back then and I’m sure some of those are probably still in place right now.” Introduction to the world of college athletics While growing up in Southern California, Pilling played sports in high school and loved being around athletics, though he admits he wasn’t even close to being a collegiate-level athlete. In the early 1980s, he enrolled at BYU, where he majored in accounting and participated in the many intramural sports the school offers. Certainly, there had to be a way to combine his accounting acumen and his passion for sports. One day as a student, he walked into the office of then-BYU business manager Mike King, who was the associate athletic director over finance. Pilling introduced himself. “I want to do what you’re doing someday,” he said. “Can I gain some experience? Anything I can do to volunteer?” That led to a two-year internship, which included being in charge of travel for the JV football program. “I did a lot of work that seems so insignificant to me now but at the time, it was great to be involved with the different aspects of scheduling team travel and helping Mike out with budgets,” Pilling said. After graduating from BYU in 1984, Pilling was hired by a CPA firm in Orange County, California. He also applied for the director of accounting job for the NCAA, though he wasn’t hired. But it motivated him to pursue his goal of becoming an athletic director at a Division I school. In order to accomplish that, he decided to earn a master’s degree in sports administration at Ohio University, one of the top-ranked graduate sports administration programs in the nation in Athens, Ohio. “Initially, because of my background in accounting and finance, I thought the natural transition was to be a business manager in some aspect of the sports industry,” Pilling said. “My year at Ohio University provided a broader perspective of the profession and I zeroed in on college athletics. There’s only 365 AD jobs in NCAA Division I. It’s extremely competitive. It’s a great profession for yourself and your family.” After graduating, he worked at a variety of disparate schools — the University of Kentucky, Morehead State, St. Bonaventure and Villanova. In 2001, Pilling returned to Provo when he was hired by BYU as a senior associate athletics director, working under men’s athletic director Val Hale and women’s athletic director Elaine Michaelis. BYU’s ‘Be Heard’ campaign One of Pilling’s accomplishments at BYU was helping to implement a campaign to stimulate season ticket sales and in-person attendance at football games in 2002. Pilling worked with Dave Newbold, who was a partner at Richter 7, an advertising agency based in Salt Lake City. Richter 7 agreed to help on a pro bono basis as long as it was given creative freedom. The idea was to good-naturedly poke fun at BYU’s unique culture. “Dave completely embraced the project and came up with some extremely creative slogans around our culture and the religion — embedded within athletics with the desired outcome to increase game attendance,” Pilling said. The campaign was known as “Be Heard.” Pilling presented the ideas to then-President Merrill J. Bateman and then-advancement Vice President Fred Skousen. “We had three categories: absolutely no, maybe and yes. President Bateman would laugh at some of these slogans and then say, ‘Nope,’” Pilling recalled. “I worked at Saint Bonaventure and Villanova. Things never went to the Vatican at those places. Things at BYU go to Salt Lake City occasionally, for good and for bad. I remember President Bateman and Fred were concerned about the edginess of some of the slogans.” While not everyone embraced the campaign, it showed Pilling’s willingness to think outside the box and try new things. “It’s OK to occasionally be self-deprecating. We were trying to get people in the seats. It played a role in getting fans back to our venues. It was an enjoyable creative project,” he said. “When I came back to BYU, I was the only administrator that had ever worked in another college athletic department. “Sometimes you have to say, ‘Why are we doing it this way? Let’s think about a different approach.’ There were a lot of incredibly talented people in the athletic department. It took a different perspective on what we were trying to accomplish.” Serving on BYU’s ‘transitional leadership team’ Pilling worked in BYU’s athletic department during a critical time of transition in the program’s history. Pilling managed athletic operations that included finance, media relations, corporate sponsorships, promotions and marketing while also serving as sports administrator for BYU men’s and women’s basketball, tennis, track and field, and swim teams. The position allowed him to gain experience in a lot of different areas of an athletic department that helped prepare him to become an AD someday. “My time at BYU was so invaluable for my career,” he said. “I was not only working on the internal side of the operation but also the external side and looking for ways to maximize all of our revenue opportunities.” At that time, BYU was in the process of building its Indoor Practice Facility and Student Athlete Building. Pilling was involved with the development of both. BYU also hired Holmoe as associate athletics director for development. Holmoe was a former Cougar defensive back and grad assistant. He had played for seven years in the NFL for the San Francisco 49ers and won three Super Bowl rings. Prior to returning to BYU in 2002, Holmoe had just been let go of his duties as the head football coach at Cal. “When I first got to BYU, Peter was a senior associate AD with Val Hale,” Holmoe said. “That’s where I first met him. He’s very sharp, very intelligent. He had a great amount of knowledge about athletics and administration. He had a good background of working at a couple of different schools. Then he came to BYU. “He’s well read and has a vast knowledge of the world of athletics,” Holmoe added. “He had a really good understanding of game strategy and he had a lot of historical knowledge and he knew about the history of college football and basketball and traditions. He was a very valuable employee at BYU and in the athletic department. We talked a ton about all kinds of things.” By the start of the 2004 football season, BYU was reeling from widely publicized honor code violations and accusations of sexual assault involving players that cast a cloud over the program and the athletic department. On top of that, the Cougars were coming off back-to-back losing seasons. Then, just a week into the 2004 campaign, BYU upset Notre Dame at LaVell Edwards Stadium, temporarily providing some much-needed joy for fans, coaches, players and administrators. Days later, however, BYU called a morning press conference, announcing that it wouldn’t be renewing the contracts of BYU’s men’s and women’s athletic directors, Hale and Michaelis. Michaelis had been at BYU for 40 years and was a decorated women’s volleyball coach. The news sent shockwaves around campus, as it attempted to streamline the program by merging the two athletic departments into one. Pilling, Holmoe and associate athletic directors Brian Santiago and Janie Penfield were appointed to a “transitional leadership team.” “We worked for a long time on the implementation of the two departments,” Holmoe said. “We put together recommendations that we presented to the president. It was a great opportunity for me, Peter, Brian and Janie to be part of that self-study. “We learned so much. Peter was a big, big part of that. The outcome resulted in consolidating the men’s and women’s athletic departments,” he continued. “At the time, BYU was one of only three athletic departments in the country that were separate. “That was a difficult chore to bring together and we did that as a leadership team. … There was a lot of cynicism from the department but we had done a lot of research and all four of us believed that we could make this work and that this was the future and that we would be stronger as a result of that. Peter had a lot of influence on those recommendations and the direction that we eventually took.” Meanwhile, the search for a new AD at BYU began. By the end of the 2004 football season, which resulted in the Cougars’ third consecutive losing season, coach Gary Crowton resigned. Holmoe and Pilling were among those that helped select then-defensive coordinator Bronco Mendenhall as the new head coach. “Bronco was the right leader at the right time and he did a phenomenal job,” Pilling said. But it wasn’t until early March that an announcement came — BYU President Cecil O. Samuelson introduced Holmoe as the new guy in charge of the athletic department. Pilling conspicuously didn’t attend the press conference. “Tom and I were closely aligned in terms of what we were trying to accomplish for BYU. It came time to find a new athletic director and Tom was selected,” Pilling recalled. “I was very disappointed but realized that I needed to stay focused on my goal of becoming an athletic director. “Sometimes challenges are difficult to understand and comprehend. But if I look back at it now, other doors opened that provided me the path I needed to travel.” After the basketball season came to a conclusion, a losing season as well, coach Steve Cleveland left BYU to take a job at Fresno State. Holmoe promoted assistant coach Dave Rose to the helm — another hiring that worked out well for the Cougars. As for Pilling, he ultimately decided it was time to move on and he looked at other opportunities. A different path “Tom’s a dear friend,” he said. “I knew that when he got the job that I most likely needed to find another path.” In 2006, Pilling left BYU to become vice president at ISP, which transitioned to IMG, the nation’s largest sports marketing company. In that role, he worked closely with BYU, TCU, Baylor, Gonzaga and Air Force. “I looked at some other positions,” he said. “Ultimately, I decided that the ISP opportunity was a perfect fit for my career progression. This enabled me to stay in college athletics, be involved in something entrepreneurial and partner with one of my dear friends, Ben Sutton. Ben and I knew that we could significantly grow BYU corporate sponsorship revenue and we were able to accomplish that.” Holmoe continued to build his relationship with Pilling while Pilling was a vice president at IMG. “He had a great career as our multimedia rights holder. … He was the one that worked with me to get BYU to go with Ben Sutton and (ISP). That was a big move and a great move for us,” Holmoe said. “We worked very closely because he oversaw BYU’s marketing and media rights. We had a real close relationship. Peter’s a huge BYU fan. He’s been a valuable resource through the years.” Columbia calling In 2015, Pilling said his work life was “kind of convenient and comfortable.” He had been at IMG for nine years. But he felt like he had one big, final challenge left in his professional career. A search firm reached out to Pilling about the Columbia athletic director job. One of the people that recommended Pilling for the position was Scott O’Neil, who is a Villanova alum and member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Currently, O’Neil is CEO of LIV Golf. Pilling started the process of applying for the job. “I was very intrigued about the Columbia position. We enjoyed our time out East when I was at Villanova and I’ve always admired the academic-athletic model that the Ivy League represents,” he said. “So I threw my name in the hat. I didn’t give it a lot of thought but then all of the sudden, it started to percolate.” One of the Columbia trustees, Jonathan Levine, part-owner of the Boston Celtics, played a key role. He reached out to former Celtic, and BYU alum, Danny Ainge and asked him about Pilling. That was instrumental in Pilling landing an interview. “The next thing I know, I was a finalist for the job,” Pilling said. “I talked with Deanna about it and we decided to pursue it seriously. I was ecstatic when President Bollinger offered me the role as athletic director.” No doubt, Pilling’s years of experience at BYU, and elsewhere, had prepared him well for the job. “I felt that the foundational component at BYU, then transitioning to IMG, gave me the perspective of looking at a number of different schools and observing how they succeeded,” he said. When talking to Columbia’s president about the position, Pilling was able to explain how he had seen up-close what Gonzaga did in terms of building a basketball program, how TCU built its football program and how the Air Force Academy develops its student-athletes. “I understood that the applications to Columbia and the Ivy League were obviously different,” he said. “The equal prioritization of academics and athletics is unique.” ‘Not on the front porch’ Columbia was founded in 1754, when it was known as King’s College. It was renamed Columbia College in 1784 after the American Revolution and it’s been known as Columbia University since 1912. Among notable Columbia alumni — Alexander Hamilton, Amelia Earhart, Warren Buffett, Alicia Keys, Art Garfunkel, Isaac Asimov, Lou Gehrig and three former presidents of the United States, Theodore Roosevelt, Dwight Eisenhower and Barack Obama; Stella H. Oaks, the mother of President Dallin H. Oaks, president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, also earned a graduate degree from Columbia. The campus is located in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Manhattan and features several buildings that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Success at Columbia University is mostly measured by the number of Nobel and Pulitzer prizes, not sports championships. By virtue of belonging to the Ivy League, Columbia is different from most Division I programs. For starters, Ivy League schools do not offer athletic scholarships. At Ivy League schools, academic achievements and reputation reign over athletic achievements. “You hear this term that the athletic department at a lot of colleges are on the front porch of the university. We’re not,” Pilling said. “Our job is to contribute to the excellence that’s present everywhere on this campus. Pick any area of study and they’re at the top of the top in terms of national and international rankings.” No, the Lions don’t frequent the national college football or basketball rankings. “You want to play a role in terms of contributing to that excellence,” Pilling said. “Sometimes that’s the challenge. I jokingly say, ‘We can get in the NCAA basketball tournament. A month later, they’re going to announce the Pulitzer Prize awards on campus.’ You kind of know where you are within the stratosphere of relativity and importance sometimes. That’s part of it.” For Columbia’s athletic department, being in New York City means being overshadowed by a host of professional teams, including the Yankees, Mets, Giants, Jets, Nets, Rangers and Islanders. “New York City can be inspiring, fascinating and complicated. It’s an area where you’re motivated every day to be better,” Pilling said. “But at the same time, the obstacles can be a little bit more challenging.” During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020-22, the Ivy League was, Pilling said, “the epicenter of COVID for a period of time. That was a really, really difficult time. The Ivy League didn’t play sports for a year when everybody else was playing. Our student-athletes were deprived of what they loved to do.” The benefits of being at Columbia When Pilling arrived at Columbia in 2015, the football program hadn’t won a conference championship since 1961. In fact, the Lions had lost 22 games in a row. The school hired Al Bagnoli, a legendary coach at Ivy League rival Penn as the new head coach in 2015 to “take on the challenge here and jump-start what we needed to do.” After losing the first three games of the 2015 season, Columbia finally broke through, snapping the losing streak with a 26-3 victory over Wagner at home at Robert K. Kraft Field. “To see the joy after the game with our football players and to know that we were on the path toward success was very motivating,” Pilling said. Last season, Columbia was co-champions of the Ivy League under first-year coach Jon Poppe. “To be part of that journey and ultimately to win a championship in football was simply the best. To say that our football alumni were over the moon would be very understated,” Pilling said. But Columbia’s athletic success hasn’t been limited to football. “We’ve been very fortunate to have success in multiple programs. We hired Megan Griffith 10 years ago, at the age of 30, to build a championship-caliber program,” Pilling said. “It was definitely a risk but you could see her vision for the women’s basketball team. “Griffith has now led her alma mater to an unprecedented four straight 20-win seasons and three-straight regular-season Ivy titles, including a win over Washington in last year’s NCAA tournament,” he continued. “In addition, our men’s tennis team has built one of the premier programs in the country. We finished top-eight in the NCAAs and Michael Zheng won the NCAA singles title this past season. “Sometimes people think that our athletes are really smart and just so happen to play a sport. It’s not the case. Our athletes are extremely talented in their given sport along with being really intelligent,” he added. “Our student-athletes want to play at the highest level in their respective sport. We had six Olympians in the Summer Games in Paris and Jackie Dubrovich won a gold medal in fencing. “This past spring, our baseball team played in the NCAA tournament and beat No. 16 Southern Mississippi 11-4 in the first game of the regionals. The people of Hattiesburg were a little stunned.” Meanwhile, Pilling also takes the holistic support of the Columbia student-athletes very seriously. “We have a program here called Success Through Well-Being. It’s responsible for the overall development of students both academically and in life,” he said. “I’m really proud of what our team is accomplishing. The ultimate goal is to create great ambassadors for not only the athletic department but also for the university. We’ve seen a lot of success in both academic achievement and career development.” Developing well-rounded student-athletes is at the heart of Pilling’s goals at Columbia. “I feel very blessed to be around remarkable student-athletes that achieve success in multiple aspects of their lives.” Pilling said. “That part of it is what drives me — the opportunity and, to some degree, the responsibility we have to position people to be successful in life.” While many Division I schools have to deal with NIL and the transfer portal, things are different at Columbia. “People place incredible value on an Ivy League education. Your earning capacity at an Ivy League institution, specifically at Columbia, is unlimited,” Pilling said. “A Columbia degree opens a lot of doors. We truly believe that our NIL is for 40 years, not four. But we’re not exempt. We have to look for opportunities to embrace NIL within the guidelines established. “We want to make sure that we avoid any aspect of pay-for-play, but we want to explore all opportunities around name, image and likeness. Athletes and their parents value the Ivy League education. We open up doors for them with alums and within New York City that they don’t have anywhere else in the country. That’s very powerful.” One of his responsibilities is fundraising, which has allowed him to form relationships with Columbia alums from all over the country, including New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft. “When I got the job, a friend of mine called me and said, ‘You’re going to meet some of the most fascinating people in your life.’ Not just people that are well-off financially but worldwide leaders in their respective industries,” Pilling said. “Since I’ve been here, I’ve spent quality time with Robert Kraft. I’ve heard him on multiple occasions reflect on his Columbia educational and athletic experience. “His time on this campus was a key foundational component to his success with the Patriots, his business ventures along with all the great causes he supports philanthropically. “There are remarkable people in New York City and at Columbia. I’ve been very fortunate to learn from individuals like Lee Bollinger, Claire Shipman, Jonathan Lavine, Lisa Carnoy, Dean Dakolias, Philip and Cheryl Milstein, Rocco Commisso, Jonathan Schiller, Sunil Gulati, Phil Satow and the late Bill Campbell. To listen to and understand their journeys, challenges and success has enabled me to grow as a person.” #OnlyHere One of Pilling’s accomplishments at Columbia includes a campaign called “#OnlyHere,” which highlights the powerful combination of the university and New York City. “Nine years ago, we started working on a branding campaign with a boutique agency in the city. We talked about what we were trying to accomplish. They presented three or four different options. When we heard the term, ‘Only Here,’ it resonated immediately,” he said. “It perfectly describes New York City and Columbia. We provide endless opportunities for you to grow and progress in whatever career or profession you want to pursue. We are less than five subway stops away from whatever you want to do for the rest of your life. “The recognition that we are at one of the top universities in the country in one of the greatest cities in the world is a pretty unique proposition. We try to reinforce that every day.” The allure of the Big Apple Pilling’s wife, Deanna, attended high school in New Jersey. The Pillings lived in Philadelphia when Peter worked at Villanova. “We always had an East Coast bias. … From my perspective on life, I like to be outside of Utah, just to be an example of my values and beliefs. It provides a different perspective and opportunity. We’ve always loved New York City,” he said. “We’d come out every year to attend the U.S. Open tennis tournament. It was always a dream to live in the city. “It’s different. I never drive a car. I walk, take the subway, cabs or Uber everywhere. We live in an apartment building that has 14 floors. I walk to work. It’s a really special place.” The energy and diversity of New York City inspire Pilling continually. “It’s a melting pot of every culture and every aspect of what the world is and it provides endless opportunities to see life from a different perspective. If you walk across our campus and the city, you’re going to meet people from all locations in the world,” he said. “You learn to respect others even though your beliefs or perspectives may be a little bit different. “Whatever you want to enjoy, whether going to a Broadway play, a Mets game, the opera or a museum, or just walking the streets of the city, it’s here for you. It’s a pretty special place. I was living in Orem and I was dropped into the Upper West Side in Manhattan. It was a cultural change but it’s something that every day has been very gratifying and fulfilling for Deanna and I.” When he took the Columbia job, the Pillings’ daughter, McKenna, was a senior in high school. Now, it’s just him and his wife living in New York City full time. “Our children come and go because they love New York City,” Pilling said. The Pillings have four children — Travis, Kyler, C.J. and McKenna — and five grandchildren. Kyler Pilling has followed in his dad’s footsteps, having spent 15-plus years in college athletics. Kyler worked for BYU IMG for four years before becoming the general manager at Virginia Tech. Now, he works in the Learfield corporate office on the national sales team in Dallas. “At home, it’s Dad, but being in the industry, it’s Peter when talking about NIL, coaching changes, etc.,” Kyler said. “His influence was a big part of why I pursued a career in college athletics. It’s rare and powerful to see someone succeed at the highest levels while staying true to the standards and beliefs we both share. Watching his path made the industry feel both inspiring and something I wanted to pursue.” Kyler added that his dad’s “impact has been felt at every stop. He’s one of those leaders whose reputation opens doors. I’m always honored when someone connects me to him. It speaks to the kind of run he’s had in the industry, both meaningful and lasting.” A pillar of faith Pilling enjoys representing his Latter-day Saint faith in quiet, simple ways, and he said his life has been enriched by associations with those of different faiths. Richard Bushman, a Latter-day Saint and former Columbia professor who is now in his 90s, is a member of Pilling’s ward. “He’s a walking encyclopedia of church history,” Pilling said. Bushman wrote an article for the Deseret News in 2017, titled “Embracing a ‘radiant’ Mormonism,” in which he mentioned Pilling. “A few years ago, a Latter-day Saint, Peter Pilling, was hired as athletic director at Columbia University. Columbia is not known as an athletic powerhouse. Its football team has at times gone years without a single victory. But Pilling came into this less-than-promising situation and had an immediate impact,” Bushman wrote. “Over the past two years, he has made Columbia proud of its athletic program with national championships in some sports. An article in the student newspaper this past spring told the story. “The writer emphasized Pilling’s impact by dint of his winning ways. He instilled goodwill and a cooperative spirit wherever he went. There was a little bit about his religion, but mainly the article emphasized that he had succeeded because he was a good person.” Pilling said Bushman’s article offers a “power perspective” on what he’s doing. “The one thing you realize in New York City is, there’s a lot of amazing people. We (as Latter-day Saints) don’t have the corner market on kindness and well-being,” he said. “There are so many people from so many walks of life and all different religions trying to help mankind. To me, you want to play a role in terms of supporting others in whatever challenges they may have.” A perspective on BYU athletics It’s been nearly 20 years since Pilling left his job at BYU but, of course, he still maintains strong ties to the school. A lot has changed. When he left, BYU was a member of the Mountain West Conference. In 2011, BYU went independent in football and placed most of its other sports in the West Coast Conference before the monumental invitation to join the Big 12 Conference in 2021. Pilling gives Holmoe a lot of credit for where the Cougars are today. “I think it’s remarkable what Tom accomplished during his time as the athletic director,” he said. “If you think about what needed to happen to get into a Power Four conference, they were definitely out-of-the-box. People weren’t knocking on BYU’s doors saying, ‘Hey, join our conference.’ “Tom had to create a unique path to reach this outcome. He needed to win in football and men’s basketball and he did exactly that. His leadership will enable BYU to compete at the highest level in college sports.” Athletic directors like Pilling aren’t sure about the future of college athletics with so many issues swirling around regarding revenue sharing, the transfer portal and NIL. But for now, Pilling said BYU is in a solid position. “BYU is in a Power Four conference and that’s where they needed to be. They’ve obviously embraced that and have had success,” he said. “It will be interesting to see down the road where college athletics land. I’m not a fortune teller but there’s probably more change to happen. “But right now, BYU’s in a really good place. It seems like they have incredible coaches. I don’t know (football coach) Kalani (Sitake) very well. I was on a flight with (men’s basketball coach) Kevin Young the other day and he seemed to be enjoying the fact that nobody knew who he was, so I didn’t introduce myself. “From afar, it appears like they’re doing all the right things. They’ve had a lot of success in high-profile sports and they’ve had tremendous success in their Olympic sports. “One of the biggest concerns, as you see all of these monetary components gravitating toward football and basketball, is how it’s going to impact the Olympic sports. This relates to the Olympic movement and our success in the Olympic Games but also to providing opportunities for young men and young women to compete in Division I sports. “If you look at BYU, they run a well-rounded athletic program. They are a leader nationally in the Learfield Director’s Cup standings. It’s a very impressive accomplishment.” According to Holmoe, Pilling has been a strong ally of BYU over the years. “Peter helped us out in a lot of key areas when he became an AD at Columbia,” Holmoe said. “It was fun to be peers and we talked a lot about the industry. He’s a really good friend, smart guy, good for BYU.” Maintaining BYU connections While his job keeps him busy in New York City, working 60-70 hours a week, he has a home at Red Ledges in Heber City, where he spends just two or three weeks out of the year. “Enough time to recharge the batteries,” he said. His wife visits Utah more often to see the grandkids. Meanwhile, Pilling hosts groups from BYU to Columbia’s campus with welcoming arms. In May, Pilling spoke to a group of sports media and journalism students from BYU inside the athletic department headquarters. He also entertains student-athletes from BYU’s Built for Life program in the spring. “BYU athletics annually brings out 15 to 20 student-athletes to New York City. They learn about various professions in the city and get a different perspective outside of Utah and Utah County on opportunities that can present themselves,” Pilling said. “They reached out to me and said, ‘Would you be willing to sit down with these student-athletes and talk about your journey and and talk about what it’s like to live in New York City and the opportunities here? “I reflect on my athletic career but I also talk about life’s journey and the experiences that New York City presents. We’ve done that for three years now. I have a tremendous amount of respect for BYU student-athletes. To give back a little bit is enjoyable. It’s nice to see them come here and ask, ‘Wow, what’s it like living in a city with 8 million people?’” When the BYU basketball team reached the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament in March, Pilling attended the game at The Prudential Center in nearby Newark, New Jersey. There, Pilling saw BYU President C. Shane Reese and introduced himself. At the time, BYU was searching for Holmoe’s successor. During a brief conversation, Pilling emphasized that he loves being at Columbia and it will be his last job. But he also added that he wanted to help BYU hire the best athletic director possible and was willing to assist in any manner. That led to a later, lengthy conversation about the position and the qualities that BYU should be looking for in the AD job. In May, BYU ended up hiring Santiago, with whom Pilling worked on the transitional leadership team 20 years ago. “An athletic director role is to provide the student-athletes and coaches the resources to be successful athletically, academically and in their preparation for life,” Pilling said. “Sometimes we make it more complex than it really is.” While Pilling remains a strong supporter of BYU athletics, he’s anxiously engaged in his work at Columbia and helping strengthen the athletic department, on and off the field. “My time at Columbia has been incredibly impactful for my career and our family,” he said. “If I were given this opportunity to do what I did in the past, I wouldn’t change anything from the standpoint of, one door closes and one door opens. ... We cherish the time we’ve been in New York City and view it as a remarkable journey and a blessing for our family.” For Pilling, it wasn’t an easy path to his dream job. But he feels right at home at Columbia.
