STILLWATER, Okla. —  A day before his own 80th birthday, T. Boone Pickens gave Oklahoma State University one of its biggest presents ever.

The billionaire energy magnate said Wednesday he has given $100 million to his alma mater for endowed chairs, the largest gift for academics ever given in the state.

A law requires the state to match, dollar for dollar, such donations for endowed chairs, doubling the oilman's gift.

"This is a fantastic, historic day for the university and for the state of Oklahoma," school President Burns Hargis told a crowd of about 2,000 gathered on the lawn of the Edmon Low Library. "This is a gift that will transform this university in ways never dreamed of before."

Pickens has made previous gifts to Oklahoma State through the years that have totaled more than $300 million, and he said Wednesday he will provide more in the future.

"Be patient. I'm not through," he said. "There will be more."

Pickens, who earned a degree in geology from Oklahoma State in 1951, said his goal was to make the university competitive with other institutions.

University officials said the $100 million is nearly double the largest non-bequest donation to any U.S. university so far in 2008. The University of Texas received a $55 million gift earlier this year.

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