Takedown Report

HBCUs capitalize on growing interest by adding sport options

The outrage, frustration and emotional trauma Jahi Jones felt as he watched video of police murdering George Floyd three years ago compelled him to seek ways to lift up other young Black men.

He just wasn’t sure how to do it.

Jones had attended the University of Maryland on an academic scholarship and was a walk-on for the wrestling team. He became team captain, competed at the NCAA championships and earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees. He later noticed that, in 2021, Black men made up half the 10 Division I national champions in wrestling but fewer than 10% of Division I wrestlers.

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That’s when everything started to click.

“I would start thinking about ways that I could get involved to help inside of the wrestling community and just make things more fair and equitable,” he said. “It was just seeing the lack of diversity, but also seeing that … we excel inside the sport, but (we are) just not having those same opportunities to develop.”

Now 25, Jones is the executive director of the HBCU Wrestling Initiative. With a major assist from that program, Morgan State in the next school year will become the only historically Black college or university (HBCU) to offer Division I wrestling. … rest of story at APnews.com/article/hbcu-new-sports-ncaa

June 7, 2023 - Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized