Arizona State QB Sam Leavitt donates $15,000 to Pat Tillman Foundation

Sam Leavitt is putting his NIL money toward a charitable cause. The Arizona State quaterback has donated $15,000 to the Pat Tillman Foundation, it was reported Saturday.

The Pat Tillman Foundation was named in honor of former Arizona Cardinals safety Pat Tillman, who also played for the Sun Devils in college. He spent from 1998-2001 in the NFL before leaving to enlist in the United States Army.

Tillman would go on to serve in Iraq and Afghanistan but was killed by friendly fire in the line of duty. He was posthumously promoted to the role of corporal.

With his donation, Leavit is not only honoring veterans but also an ASU alumni. Tillman totaled seven interceptions during his career in Tempe and was named the Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year in 1997. He was posthumously inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2010.

Per its website, the Pat Tillman Foundation “identifies remarkable military service members, veterans and spouses, empowering them with academic scholarships, lifelong leadership development opportunities and a diverse, global community of high-performing mentors and peers.” It seems that Leavitt’s money will go directly toward helping a service member in their education.

Leavitt is coming off of his first season at Arizona State and threw for 2,885 yards and 24 touchdowns to six interceptions while leading the Sun Devils to a Big 12 Championship. They would go on to play in the quarterfinals of the College Football Playoff before losing against Texas.

Joel Klatt makes compelling case for Sam Leavitt as top ten QB in college football

Transfer quarterback Sam Leavitt burst onto the college football national scene last season, as he led Arizona State to a Big 12 Championship and an appearance in the College Football Playoff as a redshirt freshman. This season, Joel Klatt is calling for the 2024 Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year to make an even bigger leap as a top 10 quarterback in all of college football.

Leavitt, who spent his first season at Michigan State before heading to Arizona State, threw for 2,885 yards and 24 touchdowns (six interceptions) last season. Aided by Heisman finalist running back Cam Skattebo, the Sun Devils made a run to the College Football Playoff, where they fell to Texas in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl.

On the May 19 edition of Klatt’s podcast “The Joel Klatt Show: A College Football Podcast,” he ranked Leavitt as the No. 4 quarterback for the 2025 season. That was ahead of Penn State‘s Drew Allar, LSU‘s Garrett Nussmeier, Florida‘s DJ Lagway, South Carolina‘s Lanorris Sellers, Illinois‘ Luke Altmeyer and Miami‘s Carson Beck.

On3’s Daniel Hager contributed to this report.