Mark Doherty ’95 gifts $500,000 to MU Mountaineer Foundation to support CU-Mansfield athletic scholarships

Former Mansfield football and track and field standout, Mark Doherty ’95, made a $500,000 gift to support student-athlete scholarships for Mansfield athletics through the recently formed Mansfield University Mountaineer Foundation.

$250,000 of the gift will be allocated to the Tom Elsasser Memorial Scholarship to provide immediate use scholarships for student-athletes at Commonwealth University-Mansfield. $125,000 will establish the Tom Elsasser Track Scholarship, an immediate use scholarship for track and field student-athletes at Mansfield. The additional $125,000 will establish the Tom Elsasser Men’s Basketball Scholarship, an immediate use scholarship for Mountaineer men’s basketball student-athletes.

“It is truly an honor to be part of this scholarship in coach Elsasser’s name” Doherty said. “Coach instilled many of the values that have contributed to my success, not only on the field but also off the field.

“I feel privileged to be able to give back in this way,” Doherty continued. “Efforts by the Mansfield University Mountaineer Foundation to establish scholarships for the next generation of students coming out of Mansfield will make a real impact.”

“Mark’s significant contribution in support of Mountaineer athletics will greatly enhance our ability to recruit talented student-athletes who wish to compete at a high level, while earning a life-changing degree at Mansfield,” said Bashar W. Hanna, president of Commonwealth University. “Tom Elsasser made a profound impact on Mansfield and countless student-athletes. Mark’s support furthers the incredible legacy that coach Elsasser left behind.”

Doherty’s gift to Mansfield is in honor of his late football coach, Tom Elsasser, who passed away on May 7, 2023. Elsasser served as the head coach of the Mountaineer football team from 1983-1995 and holds the record for longest tenure as well as most wins of any coach in Mansfield football history. 

After his retirement from coaching, Elsasser served as the director of academic advising for the university’s athletic mentoring program that he and admissions counselor Jamie Butsko developed in the late 1980’s. Following his full retirement from the university, Elsasser continued to attend games, alumni golf outings and events that brought together the past and present of Mountaineer athletics.

Doherty played under Elsasser for the 1991-94 football seasons and was also a record-setting track and field student-athlete. During the 1994 season, Doherty set school records for catches and receiving yards and would later be named the MU Fall Athlete of the Year. He ranked among PSAC and NCAA Division II leaders, earning First Team All-PSAC East and honorable mention All-American honors. Doherty played professional football in Europe for two years following graduation. He was just as impressive on the track, setting school records in the 400m and 500m dashes, where his times still rank high on the Mansfield all-time record list today

Elsasser was inducted into the Mansfield Alumni-Athletic Hall of Fame as a coach in 2003 and Doherty was inducted in 2008 for his contributions as a member of the football and track teams.

Doherty graduated from Mansfield with a degree in criminal justice in 1995 and a master’s degree in special education in 1998. He is the owner and co-founder of Foundation Lending, a premiere investment, construction and commercial lender.

The Mansfield University Mountaineer Foundation is the only officially recognized foundation that exists solely to support Commonwealth University-Mansfield and its students. To make a gift, visit mountaineerfdn.org.