Jan 3, 2025 By Bill Hughes 5 min read

Throughout his athletic and professional career, Scott Nedrow received many accolades.

However, the 1973 Ringgold graduate and 1978 University of Pittsburgh graduate recently received word that he will be recognized with an honor that he ranks up there with any previous award.

Recently, the University of Pittsburgh Varsity Letter Club announced its 2025 Awardees of Distinction, and Nedrow will be recognized when the recipients are honored on Friday, Jan. 10 at the 63rd Anniversary Letters Club Award Dinner.

Nedrow, who was a member of the men’s basketball team at Pitt, will be one of six inductees, and he is grateful.

“It is a tremendous honor, and if you look at the list of people who have been selected, to be a part of this group, it is a very big honor to top off a lot of things in my life,” he said. “It is an indication of the family I was blessed with, the teammates I played with and the coaches I had that were all very special.”

To be nominated, a former Pitt student-athlete had to have been a letterwinner and it has to be at least 25 years after they graduated or their playing days ended.

Nedrow explained the process.

“It is done by committee, and this was the fourth year I was nominated,” he said. “There are a lot of very worthy candidates up for selection and it’s a big deal.”

How was Nedrow notified?

“Sam Clancy, the Director of the Varsity Letter Club and my former teammate, called me and gave me the news on November 20th.”

Nedrow originally made a name for himself as a standout basketball player at Ringgold.

During his senior year, the team won Ringgold’s first WPIAL championship on a loaded team that saw all five starters, and the sixth man, go on to play NCAA Division 1 sports.

The Rams finished 29-2 and lost in the PIAA semifinals to General Braddock, a team they beat twice during the season.

The other starters on the team were Ulice Payne (Marquette, basketball), Mel Boyd (Pitt, track & field), Mike Brantley (Indiana St.), and future NFL Hall of Famer Joe Montana (Notre Dame, football). Donnie Miller, the sixth man, went on to play football at Delaware.

“It was an incredible group of young men,” Nedrow said. “We still keep in touch.”

Nedrow spoke about what it was like growing up in the Mon Valley and how it helped shape him.

“Around here, it is a different breed, the type of work ethic and competitiveness,” he said. “And you don’t forget where you came from.”

Nedrow appreciated the lessons his parents taught him.

“The fact of the matter is, my father was my toughest coach and my whole family was athletic,” he said. “My mother put the emphasis on the academic side and instilled how it was just as important as the athletics.”

During his freshman year, Nedrow was a member of the Pitt team that reached the NCAA Elite 8. After redshirting his sophomore year, Nedrow became a starter and was the second-leading scorer in 1976 and the third-leading scorer in 1977. He was elected co-captain of the 1978 team.

In his senior year, Nedrow was given the Blue Gold Award given to the Outstanding Student Athlete and was nominated for the prestigious Rhodes Scholarship to study at Oxford University in London, England.

Later that year, he was contacted by the Seattle Seahawks for a tryout in the NFL.

Upon graduation from Pitt, Nedrow received his Masters in Business Administration from Emory University in Atlanta majoring in Finance & Accounting.

His professional career took him to the financial world where he worked on Wall Street, including a three-year assignment in the Far East. Nedrow has now returned home to the Mon Valley where he started a small consulting firm and began training kids in basketball from youth ages through college-aged athletes.

He is currently on the Mid Mon Valley Transit Authority Board of Directors and previously served in the same position with Valley 1st Federal Credit Union. He is also hands-on with the churches he attends.

“My faith is important, and I am active in the churches I have belong to,” he said.

Another passion Nedrow has had since his youth is golf and has transitioned to teaching the game more at this point than he teaches basketball.

“I am more focused on golf,” Nedrow said. “Golf coaching is where I can make more of an impact as it is a complicated and mental individual sport.”

Nedrow is currently the assistant golf coach at Charleroi High School.

Coaching and working with athletes brings things full circle for Nedrow, who had many others help him along his journey.

“Giving back to others, as others had given to me, is a big part of my spirit,” he said. “Through college, it was a blessing to have many mentors, and to play with many great athletes and for notable coaches.”

Nedrow was inducted into the Mid Mon Valley All Sports Hall of Fame in 2017 and the Pittsburgh Basketball Club Legends Hall of Fame in 2018.

The other 2025 Awardees of Distinction include Edwin Klein (tennis), Darelle Porter (men’s basketball), Peri Jude Radecic (track & field and cross country), Jennifer Rumbaugh (women’s swimming), and Beth Tasi (women’s basketball).

Also being recognized will be two current student-athletes in Chinaza Ndee (volleyball) and Artie Rowell (football) as recipients of the Pitt Varsity Letter Club Rising Star Award.

This is the second year for the Rising Star distinction, and it celebrates Forever Panthers within 10 years of their final competition who have distinguished themselves in careers or their community.

The Jan. 10th dinner will take place at the Courtyard Pittsburgh University Center, and the honorees will also be recognized at the Pitt vs Louisville basketball game the next day.

Tipoff is at noon.