NCAA athletes who've transferred multiple times can play through the spring semester, judge rules
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — College athletes who transferred multiple times but were denied the opportunity to compete immediately can play the remainder of the academic year, a federal judge ruled Monday.
U.S. District Judge John Preston Bailey in West Virginia made the ruling based on a motion filed Friday by the NCAA and a coalition of states that sued the organization. Preston extended a temporary restraining order he issued last Wednesday, blocking the NCAA from enforcing its transfer rule for 14 days.
The earlier ruling had opened a small window for athletes with multiple transfers to compete. But that period was extended by Monday's decision, which converted the restraining order into a preliminary injunction. Bailey also canceled a previously scheduled hearing on Dec. 27 and said the case would not go to trial until the last day of competition of the winter and spring sports seasons.
“This is a great day for student athletes – they will finally be able to compete in the sports they love,” West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey said in a statement. “It's the right thing to do and I couldn't be more pleased with the outcome.”
Friday's motion came after the NCAA distributed a document to its member schools clarifying that the redshirt rule for athletes would still apply if the court's restraining order was reversed: basketball players who compete in even one game would be subject to a season in which they are eligible.
Several multi-transfer men's basketball players participated in games this past weekend, including West Virginia's Noah Farrakhan, Cincinnati's Jamille Reynolds and UT Arlington's Phillip Russell.
The lawsuit, which alleges that the NCAA transfer rule waiver process violates federal antitrust law, could have a profound impact on college sports if successful. In court documents, the NCAA said the plaintiffs “seek to reshape collegiate athletics and replace it with a system of perpetual and unchecked free agency.
NCAA rules allow underclassmen to transfer once without serving a year. But for an additional transfer as a student, the NCAA usually must grant a waiver that allows the athlete to compete immediately. Without this, the athlete would have to spend a year at the new school.
Last January, the NCAA implemented stricter guidelines for granting these waivers on a case-by-case basis.
“I hope this is the start of real change within the NCAA,” Morrisey said. “We must put the well-being of student athletes – physical, mental, academic and emotional – first. The NCAA must establish consistent, logical and defensible rules that are fair and equitable for all.”
The states involved in the lawsuit are Colorado, Illinois, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee and West Virginia.
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