The NCAA Division I cabinet in June unanimously approved the new 5-for-5 eligibility rule, giving players the option to compete for a fifth year.
This decision could have an enormous impact on the current rosters of all colleges across all collegiate sports. Thousands of athletes could potentially be granted a fifth season — including some Salukis. This would completely change rosters and scholarships, as well as transfer decisions, name, image or likeness money paid to an athlete for sponsorships and advertisements, and revenue-sharing allocations.
Since the decision was made in June, many collegiate athletes from the high school class of 2022 have sued for their fifth year of eligibility, because the original rule only applied to those who graduated in 2023 and after. Courts originally ruled in favor of the athletes, but an NCAA appeal led to a stay on the original decision, meaning those who graduated high school in 2022 can’t compete — for now.
As the appeals process plays out, there is a lot that remains unknown about which players will be allowed another year, and which athletes won’t be allowed an extra year.
What does this mean for the Salukis?
As a Division I program, SIU is directly affected by the NCAA’s new eligibility ruling. Any athletes who graduated and played just four years could potentially come back. Tim Leonard, Southern Illinois University’s director of intercollegiate athletics, said SIU has former athletes looking to appeal for their fifth year of eligibility, such as wide receiver and returnman Tae Marrero Jr.
“We have two or three kids that are trying to come back and would fit in our rosters,” Leonard said. “We still have to make it fit our squad size. Assuming they could get that year of eligibility.”
None of these athletes attempting to return are eligible as of today, but that could change at any moment depending on how cases play out in the courts.
Leonard also talked about the many factors that factor into roster construction.
“Moving forward, there is going to be a significant number of kids who could potentially gain an extra year,” Leonard said.
College athletes will now set up a five-year academic plan to align with their collegiate careers.
“There are no longer scholarship limitations, only roster limitations. So now it becomes what’s the best way to fill them up, but we also don’t have unlimited funds,” Leonard said.
These collegiate athletes are also students. A lot goes into building the most talented roster and setting up student-athletes for success in the classroom. Factors such as transfers, funding, and opportunities go into these decisions, Leonard said.
Wisne vs. NCAA
Twelve former collegiate athletes who graduated high school in 2022 and weren’t eligible for a fifth season under the new rules took the NCAA to court to seek a fifth year of eligibility under the newly released policy.
According to reporting by Jon G. Long and Bennett Widman,Long is an attorney, the federal court in Colorado handled the case. On July 31, Judge Charlotte N. Sweeney issued a preliminary injunction allowing affected athletes to compete. Sweeney said that the athletes would suffer “irreparable harm” if they were denied the chance to participate in a fifth season.
According to Long and Widman, the judge reasoned that the athletes would lose the opportunity to profit through name, image, and likeness, or NIL.
Sweeney clarified certain requirements athletes had to meet to return for a fifth season. The conditions were that athletes over the age of 24 were ineligible. According to the Colorado injunction, athletes who had signed any kind of professional contract were also ineligible.
This was specifically targeted toward two players who formally played football at Louisiana State University, tried out for NFL teams, and were cut from those teams.
These two players, Da’Quan Wright and Zavian Harris, are now attempting to return to LSU for another year.
This situation has gone to court, and the Southeastern Conference, which LSU is a member of, threatened to kick LSU out of the conference if it let these players return to play.
The NCAA transfer rules are still applicable. Newly granted fifth-year athletes could return to their teams because they had missed the transfer portal window; they could not transfer.
Additionally, colleges still had to meet NCAA roster limits and follow the revenue-sharing rules.
NCAA appeals decision
On Aug. 3, the NCAA appealed to the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals, requesting a stay of the injunction. NCAA Chief Legal Officer Scott Bearby was quoted on Aug. 3 by Long as calling the injunction “egregiously wrong.”
Athletes attempting to return are currently waiting for their specific court decision to allow them to actually compete. Those players are ready, because any day the court could allow them to play.
The NCAA added that problems would arise with incoming freshmen losing roster spots or significant playing time due to returning fifth-year athletes, as well as causing displacement within rosters that had already been formed.
On Aug. 4, the plaintiffs requested that Judge Sweeney enforce the injunction. The plaintiffs wanted the NCAA to make it possible for athletes to gain their fifth year, let schools know that athletes are now eligible for their fifth season, and stop preventing fifth-year college athletes from securing roster spots.
New 5-for-5 rule gives athletes more time, eliminates redshirts
With the new 5-for-5 rule, athletes would plan on having a five-year collegiate career instead of four. This will give them more time to accumulate their credits in the classroom.
There will be more years for an athlete to capitalize on making money through NIL. Athletes will decide where to commit to play. While there is more time to transfer, transferring a bunch could cause problems with credits.
Previously, the NCAA’s rule was five-for-four, or five years to play four collegiate seasons. This allowed athletes to take a redshirt year to develop and acclimate to the collegiate level. The new NCAA ruling has essentially eliminated redshirts. Instead of five years to play four seasons, the rule is now five years of athletic competition.
This new procedure eliminates voluntary redshirts and medical redshirts. An athlete can still develop early in their collegiate career; the difference is they are allowed to play in games, unlike a redshirt. If a player is injured, they don’t get an extra year of eligibility. They have five years to play collegiate athletics no matter the injuries suffered.
The five-year eligibility window for a collegiate athlete begins when an athlete turns 19 or enrolls in college, whichever comes first.
For example, if an athlete is 18 years old, graduates high school in May and then enrolls in a college, the five-year eligibility clock begins as soon as the athlete enrolls. That athlete now has five seasons to play in college athletics.
On the other hand, if an athlete decides to take a post-grad year after high school to work on their development, the eligibility clock begins as soon as that athlete celebrates their 19th birthday, even though they have yet to enroll at college.
Whichever of these two events occurs first immediately begins the athlete’s five years of eligibility under the new NCAA rules.
There are a few limited exceptions allowing an athlete to extend their five-year eligibility clock, including military service, pregnancy and religious missions.
Sport Reporter Aaron Carnahan can be reached at [email protected]
