Pitt's Dan Marino Throws Out First Pitch for Pirates Opener

PITTSBURGH — Former Pitt Panthers star Dan Marino will show love for his former hometown team on MLB opening day.

The Pittsburgh Pirates face off against the Miami Marlins at Loandepot Park in Miami on March 27 with first pitch set for 4:10 p.m. Marino will throw out the first pitch, honoring two cities he's lived in for most of his life.

Marino, who grew up in the South Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, played for Central Catholic, before attending Pitt. He earned Parade All-American honors and also starred on the baseball diamond, with the Kansas City Royals drafting him in the fourth round in 1979, but he would ultimately decide on football.

He starred for the Panthers, starting 44 games over four seasons from 1979-82, completing 57.6% of his passes, throwing for 8,597 yards and 79 touchdowns. His passing touchdowns rank second, passing yards rank third and his 8,320 yards.

His best season came as a junior in 1981, as he completed 226-of-380 passes, 59.5%, for 2,876 yards, 37 touchdowns to 23 interceptions and two rushing touchdowns.

He earned First Team All-East and First Team All-American honors, while ranking fourth in Heisman voting. His season passing touchdowns rank second most in Pitt history and his passing yards rank ninth most.

Marino also threw six touchdowns in a 42-28 road win over South Carolina, which ranks second most for touchdown passes in a single game in program history.

He also led Pitt to an 11-1 season, including a late win over No. 7 Georgia in the Sugar Bowl, where Marino threw the game-winning pass to tight end John Brown in the final minute.

Marino fell in the 1983 NFL Draft, after throwing 23 interceptions to 17 touchdowns as a senior in the 1982 season.

Five other quarterbacks went ahead of Marino and the hometown Pittsburgh Steelers passed over him at No. 21, as they drafted Texas Tech defensive tackle Gabe Rivera, who would only play in six NFL games.

The Miami Dolphins took Marino with the 27th pick in the first round and he went on to have a Hall of Fame career with the franchise, spending 17 seasons with them from 1983-99.

His best season came in 1984, when he led the NFL with 5,084 passing yards, 48 touchdowns and a 108.9 passer rating, earning First Team All-Pro honors and a Pro Bowl nod, plus winning the NFL Offensive Player of the Year Award and the NFL MVP too.

Marino also took down the Steelers that season in the AFC Championship Game, throwing for four touchdowns and 421 yards in the 45-28 victory at home. The Dolphins would lose Super Bowl XIX, 38-16 to the San Francisco 49ers.

The Steelers made the playoffs just once in the following eight years, as they struggled from the transition from the "Steel Curtain" to afterwards.

Marino finished with 61,361 passing yards and 420 passing touchdowns, which both rank in the top 10 all-time in NFL history.

He also earned numerous honors, including three First Team All-Pro and three Second Team All-Pro nods, nine Pro Bowl appearances, while leading the NFL in passing yards five times and in passing touchdowns three times.

Marino earned his enshrinement into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2003, Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2005 and then the Pitt Athletics Hall of Fame in 2018. Pitt and the Dolphins both retired Marino's No. 13 jersey as well.

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