For more than a decade, Superior Plumbing, led by owner Jay Cunningham, has been a consistent supporter of Kennesaw State University (KSU) athletics. Cunningham sees sponsorship of school sports as an essential way to contribute to the local community.
“In order for our business to have a chance to thrive, we have to give back,” Cunningham said. “It’s not really something you sit back and wonder, ‘if you should do it’ – too many people do. It’s a must that you also give back.”
Superior Plumbing has grown from a one-person operation into a company serving hundreds of households each week over its 40-year history. The business has contributed more than $2 million in support of KSU Athletics.
The latest contribution is a $500,000 gift for the Athletics Capital Campaign, which will name a suite in KSU’s Convocation Center. Earlier this year, the center was renamed VyStar Arena.
This recent donation follows the renewal of Superior Plumbing’s general sponsorship of KSU athletics with a $1.6 million commitment for this year. The original sponsorship agreement began before KSU’s first football season and ran through 2025 with an initial value of $1.5 million.
As part of the sponsorship deal, Superior Plumbing received naming rights to the Loge Section at Fifth Third Bank Stadium and became known as the “Official Plumber of KSU Athletics.” The company also benefits from signage at various university athletic venues, including the Convocation Center, Bailey Park, and Mickey Dunn Stadium. Its advertisements appear in game programs, on television and radio broadcasts, and on the Department of Athletics’ official website.
“We thought it would be a good fit to step in on the ground floor of something major at the university,” Cunningham said about starting the partnership.
The relationship between Superior Plumbing and Kennesaw State has lasted over ten years and is set to continue. During this period, several changes have taken place at university sports facilities: VyStar Arena now hosts basketball and volleyball games; Fifth Third Bank Stadium serves as home for football; and Mickey Dunn Stadium replaced Stillwell Stadium for baseball.
“It’s a little over $2 million that we’re investing in the school, in our relationship as we go forward,” Cunningham said. “And we just finished a 10-year one, which isn’t big on a big scale, but it is for a small business in Kennesaw. And we are in Kennesaw, too. A family-owned small business located a mile from the school.”
Cunningham’s ties to Kennesaw State are personal as well as professional—several of his eight children attended KSU; his wife works there; and he took classes at the university early in his career.
“It’s local. It is where a few of my kids went to school. It’s where I have resided for the last 48 years. So, it is home,” he said. “And we believe as a company that we give back to the community that we live in, that provides us with our livelihood.”
Cunningham remains committed to supporting both Kennesaw State University and other educational initiatives within Cobb County.
“In business, all that we get comes from the community, so it’s incumbent on a good business to give back,” he said. “I wish that we could deliver that message to all the business community — that’s how their business succeeds, is to give back.”
