In oil-and-gas and investment endeavors, Pickens became nationally prominent. His total on lifetime benevolence amounts to slightly more than $1 billion. Roughly half of that money went to his alma mater, Oklahoma State University.

“I was put on this earth to make money,” Pickens once said, “and to be generous with it.”

While Pickens’ gifts to OSU were “split between academics and athletics,” longtime spokesman Rosser said, the most famous single donation was the $165 million he gave to the Athletic Department.

“Mr. Pickens is a big part of our success and we’re all thankful for the lasting impact he’s had on Oklahoma State, both athletically and academically,” OSU coach Mike Gundy said in a statement Wednesday. “It would have been difficult for us to climb as high as we have without him. You’d be hard-pressed to find anyone who has had a greater impact on a university than Mr. Pickens has had at Oklahoma State. He’ll be missed, but his legacy here will live on for a long time to come.”

With that money, along with subsequent donations from Pickens and others, there was an extensive renovation of the Cowboys’ football venue. Since 2003, the Cowboys have played home games at Boone Pickens Stadium.