Growing Overtime’s Social Media Following into the Tens of Millions, Iona Alumnus Earns Forbes “30 Under 30” Recognition
Tom Weingarten ’16 carries the Gael passion forward into his career, pioneering the next generation of sports media
Iona University alumnus Tom Weingarten ’16 – chief growth officer at Overtime, a sports media brand for the next generation of fans – was recently named to the Forbes “30 Under 30” list in the sports category as well as the Sports Business Journal’s “New Voices Under 30.”
Since its creation in 2016, Overtime has grown tremendously and amassed a large social media following – including over 10 million followers on Instagram and 26.6 million followers on TikTok. In an article from the Sports Business Journal, Weingarten is credited with his achievements in leading social media strategy for the brand.
“I feel very honored to be recognized and it's all possible because of the amazing team at Overtime,” said Weingarten. “I've been so lucky to work with people who I consider my closest friends who share the same passions as me.”
Weingarten earned his Bachelor of Business Arts in Business Management from Iona in 2016. Working several jobs and being a commuter student during his undergraduate career, Weingarten said he learned so much about hard work, focus and time management.
“I think my biggest takeaway was realizing how much our professors cared about their students,” Weingarten said. “That type of passion has motivated me to act similarly in my career towards others.”
His advice to students eager to succeed?
“Always be extremely curious and be down to work on everything,” he said. “In most cases, you don't know what you want to do or what you're best at. You have to give things your 100 percent to see what the potential of a role is.”
Overtime is now beginning its third season in their basketball league, Overtime Elite. The company has also announced the creation of Overtime Select, a Women’s Basketball league. Both leagues feature some of the best aspiring professional basketball players in the world.
Learn more about Overtime or watch on YouTube!
ABOUT IONA
Founded in 1940, Iona University is a master's-granting private, Catholic, coeducational institution of learning in the tradition of the Edmund Rice Christian Brothers. Iona's 45-acre New Rochelle campus and 28-acre Bronxville campus are just 20 miles north of Midtown Manhattan. With a total enrollment of nearly 4,000 students and an alumni base of more than 50,000 around the world, Iona is a diverse community of learners and scholars dedicated to academic excellence and the values of justice, peace and service. Iona is highly accredited, offering undergraduate degrees in liberal arts, science and business administration, as well as Master of Arts, Master of Science and Master of Business Administration degrees and numerous advanced certificate programs. Iona students enjoy small class sizes, engaged professors and a wide array of academic programs across the School of Arts & Science; LaPenta School of Business; NewYork-Presbyterian Iona School of Health Sciences; and Hynes Institute for Entrepreneurship & Innovation. Iona is widely recognized in prestigious rankings, including The Princeton Review’s 2024 national list of “The Best 389 Colleges” and The Wall Street Journal/College Pulse’s “2024 Best Colleges in America,” which ranked Iona at #66 in the nation overall and #8 in the nation among Catholic schools. Iona’s LaPenta School of Business is also accredited by AACSB International, a recognition awarded to just six percent of business schools worldwide. In addition, The Princeton Review recognized Iona’s on-campus MBA program as a “Best Business School for 2023.” Iona also offers a fully online MBA program for even greater flexibility. In July 2021, Iona announced the establishment of the NewYork-Presbyterian Iona School of Health Sciences, which is now principally located on Iona’s Bronxville campus in collaboration with NewYork-Presbyterian. Connecting to its Irish heritage, the University also recently announced it is expanding abroad with a new campus in County Mayo, Ireland. A school on the rise, Iona officially changed its status from College to University on July 1, 2022, reflecting the growth of its academic programs and the prestige of an Iona education.