UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Happy Valley United, the NIL collective supporting all 31 teams and over 800 Penn State student-athletes, is launching More To Give, a club within the collective dedicated to securing NIL opportunities for the men's basketball team. In conjunction, Happy Valley United has hired Pat Flannery as the club's general manager to spearhead development and fundraising efforts for men's basketball.
A legendary college basketball student-athlete and coach, Flannery hails from Pottsville, Pa. and played college basketball at Bucknell, captaining the team for two seasons. He returned to his alma mater as the head coach in 1994 and retired as the second-winningest coach in program history. Under his guidance, the Bison won 234 games and became the first team from the Patriot League to win an NCAA Tournament game when they defeated Kansas during the 2004-05 season. Upon retirement from coaching, Flannery served as Bucknell's Senior Development Officer. He also served as Lebanon Valley College's head coach from 1989-1994, where he won a Division III national championship and coached current Penn State men's basketball coach Mike Rhoades.
"I'm thrilled to join Happy Valley United and help these student-athletes maximize their name, image and likeness opportunities," Flannery said. "Growing up and working close to Penn State, I know how special this place is. To make an impact on players in this way and work alongside one of my former players and a longtime friend in Coach Rhoades to help build his program, I couldn't pass up the opportunity."
More To Give pays respect to teams of the past that called the Bryce Jordan Center home. It is a battle cry that encompasses accountability, work ethic and selflessness both on and off the court. Former Nittany Lion John Harrar coined the phrase while facing adversity throughout his five years donning the blue and white.
"Penn State men's basketball molded me into the player and person I am today," Harrar said. "As an alum of the program and university, we all have critical roles in keeping our men's basketball program at a championship level. It starts with NIL and giving our players an incredible experience within the Penn State community. Players, coaches and fans alike, we all have More To Give."
Led by first-year head coach Mike Rhoades and a staff that includes program alum Joe Crispin, the Nittany Lions still embrace the More To Give mantra.
"NIL is an incredibly important part of building our program to win championships," said Rhoades. "We have made our program better with the addition of Pat Flannery. He knows what it takes to build a winning and sustainable program on and off court. His leadership in the area of program building and fundraising will be game changing for our program. I'm more than excited to get back with Pat and use our shared Pennsylvania ties to build something special."
Since the inception of Happy Valley United, men's basketball student-athletes have made a positive mark on the State College community. Men's basketball student-athletes made connections at events for Housing Transitions, Centre Safe and the American Cancer Society. Now, through More To Give, there will be additional opportunities for student-athletes to capitalize on their NIL.
Fans and businesses can channel their passion for Penn State men's basketball in the following ways:
- Signing up for a monthly or annual membership supporting men's basketball on HappyValleyUnited.com.
- Doing a business engagement with a specific student-athlete or the team.
As part of the More To Give initiative, men's basketball fans can start a contribution directed to the team through Happy Valley United. Exclusive benefits for Happy Valley United members, including content through HVU On Demand and merchandise, will be added soon.
More information on More to Give can be found here.