Donnelly tapped for NCAA Men’s Basketball oversight committee

In September, Furman University Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Jason Donnelly embarked on a four-year term as part of a 20-member team tasked with the oversight of NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball.

Donnelly, the 2023-24 National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) Athletics Director of the Year, will serve on the oversight committee through August 2030. 

The Men’s Basketball Oversight Committee ensures proper governance and accountability for the sport, enhances the development and public perception of the game, and makes recommendations related to regular-season and postseason play. The committee prioritizes enhancement of the student-athlete educational experience – academically and athletically – and in doing so, promotes student-athletes’ personal growth and leadership development.

The appointment marks an important milestone for Furman and the SoCon with representation at the highest level in the NCAA.

“I am deeply honored and humbled to be selected to serve on the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Oversight Committee,” Donnelly said in a June statement. “It is a privilege to represent Furman University and the Southern Conference while helping shape the future of our sport.”

Donnelly, who has invested more than two decades in Division I men’s basketball as both a coach and administrator, said he has “tremendous respect for the impact this game has on student-athletes and institutions alike – I am grateful for the opportunity to work alongside outstanding colleagues from across the country in support of the continued growth and success of college basketball.”

In his seven years at the helm of Furman University’s athletics program, Donnelly has delivered bold new energy, innovation and vision to Paladin Athletics, with an emphasis on a first-class student-athlete experience, academic achievement, record-breaking donor fundraising, significant capital projects, and enhanced alumni and external engagement strategies.

During Donnelly’s tenure at Furman, the men’s basketball program has reached the Southern Conference Tournament finals in four of the last five years and claimed league title and NCAA Tournament bids in 2023 and 2026. This past year, Furman reopened Timmons Arena following a $40 million, donor funded renovation project that transformed the home of the Paladins into one of the top mid-major basketball arenas in the country.

Donnelly has served as the chair of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Competition Committee, chair of the Southern Conference Athletics Directors committee, and was a member of the FCS Football Regional Advisory Committee. In recent years, Furman has co-hosted multiple NCAA Basketball Tournament events with the Southern Conference, including the 2022 men’s first and second rounds, the 2023 NCAA Women’s Basketball Regionals, and the 2026 men’s first and second rounds in Greenville.

Prior to Furman, Donnelly served the Villanova men’s basketball program as a coach and administrator for Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame head coach Jay Wright. During Donnelly’s 14 years at Villanova, the Wildcats made 13 NCAA Tournament appearances, including runs to the 2006 Elite Eight, 2009 Final Four, while winning the 2016 and 2018 Men’s Basketball National Championships.