Eight Morehead Honors College alumni were named to UGA’s 40 Under 40 Class of 2025. Top row, from left: Dave Bliss, Nic Fink, Mike Macdonald, and Sarah Merkel. Bottom row: Avery Monthero, Phillip Mote, Colby Ruiz, and Brian Watts.
Eight Honors alumni were selected for UGA’s 40 Under 40 Class of 2025. UGA’s 40 Under 40 celebrates young alumni leading the pack in their industries and communities. Morehead Honors College recipients for 2025 were Dave Bliss, assistant coach for the Oklahoma City Thunder, who won the 2025 NBA championship; Nic Fink, Olympic gold medalist and project manager for Quanta Utilities Engineering Services; Mike Macdonald, head coach of the Seattle Seahawks, who won Super Bowl LX in February 2026; Sarah Merkel, breast surgical oncologist with the Yale School of Medicine; Avery Monthero, sales account executive with Delta Air Lines; Phillip Mote, primary care pediatrics physician with Lee Health; Colby Ruiz, vascular surgeon with South Georgia Medical Center; and Brian Watts, data and research officer with The Pew Charitable Trusts.
