Dragging mats and shaping NCAA policy

On some days, Jahi McDonald helps decide the future of college athletics. On others, he rolls out the mats for a safe spot to land.

Both are true. Neither surprises him.

Inside the Wright State University Nutter Center, there is no permanent setup for high jump. So, McDonald and his teammates assemble it themselves — strapping the mats into place to create a landing area piece by piece. When practice ends, they take it all apart.

“You’ve got to get it out the mud,” McDonald said.

That idea — earning everything, building from scratch — has come to define his experience. It also explains how a junior marketing major from Huber Heights ended up in rooms where the future of college athletics is being shaped.

“At a place like this, if you want to make an impact, people notice,” he said. “They’ll put you in positions to grow.”

McDonald serves as president of Wright State’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and represents the Horizon League at the national level. He was also appointed to the NCAA track and field oversight committee, where he sits alongside coaches, administrators and former Olympians.

In those rooms, his voice carries the same weight as representatives from the country’s largest programs.

“It’s cool to represent all Division I athletes,” he said. “But it’s even bigger to represent Wright State in those spaces.”

The work isn’t abstract. As college athletics undergoes rapid change — from name, image and likeness policies to questions around revenue sharing and eligibility — McDonald is part of the conversations shaping what comes next.

But he’s quick to point out that even those inside the system are still figuring it out.

“It’s an ever-changing landscape,” he said. “A lot of the questions people have — we have those same questions.”

That perspective is grounded in his own path.

McDonald didn’t begin running track seriously until his junior year of high school, and he wasn’t a high-profile recruit. When he arrived at Wright State, the men’s track and field program itself was still new.

“I was the first men’s jumper recruited here,” he said.

He’s watched the program grow from a handful of athletes into a full team — one that includes conference contenders and emerging talent who he now mentors.

That growth mirrors his own.

“I just want to contribute,” he said. “Score for the team. Be someone others can rely on.”

Off the track, that mindset shows up in his leadership. Through SAAC, McDonald works as a liaison between student-athletes and administrators, helps organize initiatives and contributes to discussions that affect student-athletes nationwide.

It’s experience that goes beyond athletics.

“You’re working with people, solving problems, communicating,” he said. “It’s real-world experience. It’s not just something that looks good — it is good.”

The support system around him has made that possible. He points to mentors like assistant coach Jeff Ross, who volunteers his time to help build the young program, and staff members who recognized McDonald’s potential early and encouraged him to pursue leadership opportunities at the national level.

“At a place like this, if you want to make an impact, people notice,” he said. “They’ll put you in positions to grow.”

That sense of opportunity is part of how McDonald defines Wright State itself: “Growth and community. That’s what it feels like here.”

That perspective — intentional and forward-looking — carries into everything he does, whether he’s preparing for competition, speaking in NCAA meetings or striving for his next 4.0 semester, an accomplishment he’s as proud of as setting a new personal best.

Because no matter how far opportunities take him, the foundation stays the same.

The work is waiting. The mats still need to be assembled. And that next jump will be earned.

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