University of Texas Rio Grande Valley announces Udunna’s Unlimited Potential Ready to be Unleashed at NCAA West Preliminary
RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The excitement surrounding freshman jumper Jedidiah Udunna has been palpable since the moment he signed with The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) track & field program.
Udunna was a multi-sport athlete at George Bush High School in Fort Bend. The 6-foot-3 force was an all-district cornerback, district champion in basketball, full-programmed track & field weapon and a scholar athlete.
He came to UTRGV with unlimited potential that has been molded all year by track & field assistant coach Mike Embry.
"Jed, I tell him this all the time, I would say he's the best pure athlete I think I have ever seen. I'm not joking around when I say that," Embry said. "To see that type of athleticism and to have him be pretty raw at track & field excited me. When you get the chance to really specialize on one thing and put everything toward that event, you have no choice but to be really good at what you're doing. Jed is starting to see that happen."
Udunna's abilities debuted in a big way at his first collegiate meet. He jumped straight to No. 2 in the indoor program record books with a long jump of 7.22 meters. He made four entries into the record books in long jump and was seventh in the event at the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) Indoor Championships.
He got stronger through the outdoor season. He owns five of the 10-best long jump marks in the outdoor record books, including a program record and the top four jumps. He secured his spot in the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field West Preliminary men's long jump on March 24, clearing 7.80 meters in a second-place finish at the Charles Austin Classic. He won silver at the WAC Outdoor Championships. 
Udunna will compete in the men's long jump at the NCAA West Preliminary at 8 p.m. (CT) Wednesday at Sacramento State's Hornet Stadium. He's heading to the meet as the 19-seed, chasing a top-12 finish to advance to the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Austin June 7-10.
"This was definitely a goal but it's also not the end goal. That's to go to nationals and show what the Valley's about. This is a step in the right direction," Udunna said.
Do those big expectations ever weigh heavy on the young man's shoulders? No. Pressure pushes the high-energy, spirited Udunna.
"I put high expectations on myself. I've become used to high-pressure situations. It's a drive to strive for more," Udunna said. "My UTRGV coaches have helped me to relieve some of that pressure and told me to just go out there and have fun, because when you're having fun, that's when the big stuff comes. It's a balance."
Udunna certainly has, and radiates, fun at every practice. The former member of the Bush Theatrical Ensemble and UIL state champion in one-act play can make any situation his stage to shine. He puts on the music. He breaks out dance moves and gets his teammates and coaches dancing, too. Jokes and laughs are abundant over by the jumping pits. But so is hard work.
Throughout his first year at UTRGV, Udunna has learned a lot about what it really takes to execute a great long jump. He focused on approach and landing and being able to finesse every inch of distance out of each jump. He's bigger than the average long jumper, which creates some challenges in terms of flexibility to hold his landing, but his size also leads to more explosiveness off the board.
"I never really had a jumps coach in high school, so Coach Mike has helped me a lot," Udunna said. "He's helped me to see that what's even more important than the jump is the setup of it, so if you don't come down the runway with the proper stuff, then you're not going to get the results that you want. I've worked on that and carrying my speed through the board. My approach has been my biggest area of growth. I'm still working on my landing. Before, I'd just land in sand. Now it's more tactical and I'm big on technique."
Udunna had to take a step backward to move forward – literally. At the indoor conference meet, Udunna wasn't in finals contention after two jumps. Embry saw something in Udunna's second jump and told the freshman to move his starting spot back before jump No. 3.
"From that point on, he's been a totally different jumper," Embry said. "We talk about floors and ceilings all the time. Every competition we go to, we don't want to jump shorter than 25 feet, that's his floor. There is no ceiling for Jed. The possibilities are endless."
Embry has tabled some of those possibilities during Udunna's freshman year to set up his future. Udunna competed a few times in the 60- and 100-meter dashes this year. Triple and high jump were considered. But the coaching staff decided first to have Udunna realize how good he can be by tailoring his abilities for a shot at reaching nationals in long jump.
"It's more important for him to experience success as early as possible," Embry said. "Success breeds the want for more, the want to be better. We'll get to those other things in the future, but this year we wanted him to experience the success and individualize in that one event because he has the ability to be at the national championship. That's been the goal, to be an All-American this year and to do even more in the future."
Before he jumps, Udunna likes to get the "track clap" going to fire him up. He channels all that energy then powers down the runway, making sure to do all the little things Embry talks about in practice – stand up with speed, open your chest, take care of the drive, explode off the board. He's ready to execute and show out for himself and the UTRGV track & field program in Sacramento.
"We've done the running, all the sweating, we've handled business. Now, we get to see our work come to fruition," Udunna said. "Through the help from Coach Mike and the weight room, our athletic trainers Shane Venteicher and Aimee Silva and everything, I'm just very blessed to be here.
"I never knew the level I could reach until Coach Mike and head track & field/cross country coach Shareese Hicks invested in me," he continued. "They told me I could be something, and that definitely helped me get on this path to be the best long jumper in the world. I'm grateful for this season. It's been a blessing and it just makes me want to keep striving for more."
Original source can be found here.