Courtesy of Joe Makoid

Makoid has found success after Villanova with a 44-year career as a CEO and salesman in the tech industry.

Most student-athletes never continue on to the professional level in their respective sport. Fewer than 2% of student-athletes end up playing a professional stint. CEO and technology salesman, Joe Makoid (‘81), was one Villanova student-athlete who found success by going down a different path.

Makoid played defensive tackle for Villanova from 1977 to 1981. He was part of one of the last Villanova football teams before the University discontinued the sport. Makoid’s efforts were a major reason the football program returned to Villanova in 1984.

Along with the help of other former Wildcats, Makioid founded the Villanova Football Club to finance the return of the football program and keep it going for generations to come. The club has raised millions of dollars in total to help support Villanova’s football program.

The Villanova Football Club, which once only consisted of five former Wildcats, has grown to more than 1,300 members as of February 2025.

The football program was what originally drew Makoid to Villanova. He had schools like Maryland and Navy throwing offers his way, but Villanova stood out. As a local kid from Norristown, PA, attending Villanova meant Makoid’s family could be in the stands to watch him play.

“I was an All-Catholic football player at [Bishop Kenrick High School] back then, so I was recruited by a lot of big schools,” Makoid said. “I mean, North Carolina, Maryland, Boston College and Navy [all recruited me]. I knew my parents could watch me play [at Villanova], and they loved it.”

In addition to his Villanova football career, Makoid graduated from the Villanova School of Business with a degree in economics. His first job was in the petroleum engineering field as a salesman.

On a sales call, Makoid sat down at the desk with a representative from Shell. Sitting on the desk was a first-of-its-kind IBM Personal Computer.

“I was on a [sales] call with an engineer from Shell, and he had the first IBM computer on his desk,” Makoid said. “And that’s all he wanted to talk about. He said, ‘this thing’s going to change the world.’”

That exchange began Makoid’s successful 44-year career in the technology industry.

“[My first job] was a software company in New York, started by NYU guys,” Makoid said. “We got successful and I ended up bringing in two of my buddies, Bill Conners (‘82) and Lou Gryga (‘80), who both went to Villanova. The three of us were the initial sales force, so we helped build it, and then our careers in IT were launched.”

Makoid had a feeling that technology was going to be essential to the future of the world. He successfully founded three different software companies over his career. All three companies (Bus-Tech, Hive-IO and MakTrax) were sold to firms, and Makoid was able to successfully exit and move on to new ventures.

As of late, Makoid is an operating partner with private equity investment firm, Capital Square Partners, advising companies on growing sales to make them successful in the tech space. The firm works across the healthcare, consumer and business services sectors.

Villanova has taught Makoid a lot about what it takes to be successful in any given industry. After all, his wife Cathy, daughter Amanda, and son Joe all graduated from Villanova. The younger Joe Makoid (‘10) was a defensive lineman for the Wildcats.

Makoid noticed the generous amounts of Wildcats making it far in their respective fields. It is a reason why he puts so much effort into growing the Villanova Football Club. The club is not just there for its massive tailgates outside Villanova Stadium.

The club was built on three pillars: financial assistance, mentorship and fun. Mentoring student-athletes means a lot to Makoid and the members that make up the club.

“We understand that kids come to Villanova to play football, but at some point, very few are going to go into the NFL,” Makoid said.  “Although we do have some of those, others are going to need help with jobs and early on guidance too. [We also help with] internships. We have an annual meeting with the players to go over that.”