Iconic Penn State football letterman returns to school in fundraising role

One of Happy Valley’s favorite sons is coming home. First reported by Blue-White Illustrated, Penn State football letterman Michael Mauti has rejoined the university as Associate Director of Development for Intercollegiate Athletics. Credited with helping to lead the Nittany Lions program through the wake of the Jerry Sandusky scandal, Mauti will now continue his support of Penn State athletics in the school’s fundraising efforts.

Michael Mauti reunites with Nittany Lions in fundraising role

As reported by Nate Bauer of Blue-White Illustrated on Monday afternoon, ex-Nittany Lions linebacker Michael Mauti has returned to Penn State as its Associate Director of Development for Intercollegiate Athletics. In the role, the Penn State football letterman will work closely with the Nittany Lion Club, which generates support from over 27,000 donors annually.

Michael Mauti was added to the Penn State athletics staff directory on Monday night. Prior to that, he took to social media to confirm the news. “I’m proud to be back home,” Mauti wrote on Twitter/X. “Let’s work! #WEARE.”

Mauti has played a critical role for Penn State football with the emergence of NIL in college athletics. He was one of the founding members of the Lions Legacy Club collective, which merged with Happy Valley United last June.

The former linebacker has also been the associate head coach at Trinity High School in Camp Hill since last year. There, alongside Penn State football teammate and head coach Jordan Hill, Mauti helped coach Messiah Mickens, the Nittany Lions’ lone 2026 commit and the No. 2 prospect in Pennsylvania.

Mauti’s Penn State football legacy extends well beyond the field

Of course, the name Mauti carried weight around Penn State before No. 42 ever stepped foot on campus. But Michael Mauti lived up to his family’s legacy and more during his time in Happy Valley. 

Although plagued with injury, including three ACL tears, Mauti still had an accomplished Penn State football career. Mauti’s Nittany Lion career ended with 207 total tackles, 4.5 sacks, and 8 turnovers forced. His breakout year came in 2012, earning All-American, All-Big Ten, and Big Ten Linebacker of the Year honors with 95 tackles, 2.5 sacks, and 3 interceptions in his senior season.

However, Michael Mauti will forever be remembered for his actions off the field during that 2012 season. Mauti became one of the faces of Penn State football following the Jerry Sandusky scandal and subsequent sanctions, keeping the program alive in its darkest hour and, in many ways, paving the path for the success of the last decade.

“No sanction, no politician is ever going to take away what we’ve got here,” Mauti said in the now iconic press conference following the announcement of the NCAA sanctions in 2012. “None of that is ever going to tear us apart. Right now, all we can do is, we can put our heads down and go to work. That’s all we can do.

“We’re going to fight for Penn State, we’re going to fight for each other, because this is what Penn State is about: fighting through adversity. And we’re going to show up every Saturday, and we’re going to raise hell.”