Pilot Flying J's Jimmy Haslam Receives Top Alumni Award

Jimmy Haslam

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Pilot Flying J CEO Jimmy Haslam has reason to smile: He received the University of Tennessee's (UT) top alumni award.

The recognition comes six months after a federal raid on Pilot Flying J's Knoxville, Tenn., headquarters.

Haslam was one of four recipients to be honored with the Distinguished Alumnus Award, the school's highest honor for graduates who have "excelled in their field on the national or international stage and have brought credit to UT." The 2013 honorees received the award at a banquet on Sept. 27.

Haslam is a graduate of the University of Tennessee's College of Business Administration.

In addition to leading the family-owned travel center company, Haslam is owner of the National Football League's Cleveland Browns. His brother, Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam, is chairman of the university's board of trustees.

Pilot Flying J operates more than 650 retail locations and is the largest operator of travel centers and travel plazas in North America.