Situations Where Student-Athletes Might Qualify for a Waiver or Appeal

Many times, student-athletes don’t realize that they qualify for waivers or appeals that could possibly extend their eligibility, rule them immediately eligible for competition, or allow for a scholarship or appeal hearing.

A few of the situations where a waiver or appeal might apply include:

  • The student-athlete has been injured in competition, hurt in an accident or had an illness that affects their ability to compete.
  • A coach or athletic department has cancelled a student-athlete’s scholarship for “violating team rules.”
  • A student-athlete has extenuating circumstances including illness or death of family and they need to take a break from competition.
  • A student-athlete is denied eligibility and there are extenuating circumstances.

Are You Wondering if Your Student-Athlete Qualifies for a Waiver or Appeal?

During a confidential Waivers & Appeals Consult, Rick will ask questions to determine if the student-athlete qualifies for either and then will discuss available options and best set of “next steps.”

ALL information shared is private and confidential – nothing is shared with schools, coaches, etc. unless you specifically ask Rick to contact someone for info on your behalf.

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Speaking of NCAA Transfers…

I came across a sports media report a few days ago that 131 football players from Bowl Subdivision programs have entered the NCAA Transfer Portal since August 1.

The report didn’t include this info but it would be interesting to know how many of those entered the Portal before their season started compared to how many have entered the Portal in the middle of their season.

That report also noted that Florida State has the most football players in the Transfer Portal with 5, while Air Force, Colorado State and Syracuse all have 4 players in the Portal.

We’ve been receiving a large number of inquiries about the Transfer Portal recently.

We know that the number of athletes entering the Portal will be increasing for many sports over the next few weeks, especially as Fall sports move closer to the end of their season.

A recent article published to our website, When is the Best Time For An Athlete To Enter The NCAA Transfer Portal?, lists 4 things to consider before an athlete files a request.

If your athlete is considering a Transfer and wants to be prepared to enter the Portal at the end of their season or even before, schedule a Transfer Consultation online or contact us via rick@informedathlete.com or 913-766-1235.

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NCAA DI Football Increases Scholarship Limit

The NCAA Division I Council has approved a temporary one-year waiver to increase the annual scholarship signing limit for Football only.

The Chair of the Football Oversight Committee stated that this decision was made because “…schools should have temporary flexibility to help address possible roster depletion due to transfers.”

The one-year waiver will permit Division I football programs to sign up to 7 more recruits than the normal standard limit (25 for FBS schools and 30 for FCS schools) to REPLACE current team members who transfer out of the program after this current semester.

    • For example, if four football players transfer out from a Division I FBS program at the end of this semester, that program will be permitted to sign up to 29 incoming recruits rather than the normal annual limit of 25 signees.
    • The overall total scholarship limits for Division I football programs will remain the same, however. Those limits are 85 for FBS football programs and 63 scholarship equivalencies for FCS programs.
    • D1 schools will be able to sign replacements for transfers who depart their school on or after the last day of the school’s Fall term or Dec. 15th, whichever is earlier.

December 15th is the first day of the early National Letter of Intent signing period for Division I football programs.

If you have questions about the scholarship limits or rules in football or any other sport, contact us at 913-766-1235 or write to rick@informedathlete.com.

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When is Best Time for an Athlete to Enter the NCAA Transfer Portal?

Here are a few things a student-athlete should consider before entering the NCAA Transfer Portal:

  • Do you want to finish out the current season with your teammates, especially if your team has an opportunity for post-season competition?
  • Or are you are very unhappy with your current situation, and want to start contacting coaches at other schools as soon as possible regarding a potential transfer?
  • Are your planning to transfer at the end of the Fall semester, or do you want to stay at your current school through the end of the academic year?
  • Are you concerned about the possible loss of your athletic scholarship?

If your athlete is considering a transfer and unsure about when to enter the NCAA Transfer Portal or has questions regarding the steps in a transfer, schedule a Transfer Consult online, rick@informedathlete.com or by calling 913-766-1235.

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Additional Official Visit Opportunities for NCAA Division I Sports

October 15th opens up opportunities for recruitable athletes in all NCAA Division I sports to take additional official visits to DI schools:

Up to 5 official visits can be taken prior to October 15th and 5 more official visits can occur after October 15th.

Athletes who qualify include:

  • Current four-year college athletes who are planning to transfer to an NCAA D1 program.
  • Athletes who have completed high school, but may have chosen to take a gap year and have delayed their college enrollment, or
  • Two-year college athletes.

HOWEVER,

  • If you are a currently enrolled two-year college student-athlete,
  • Were a Non-Qualifier for Division I (based on your high school academic performance)
  • And are in your first year as a full-time student at a two-year college,

You’re not allowed to take an official visit to a Division I university until you complete your freshman year at the two-year college.

Have Questions & Need Advice?

Schedule a confidential Recruiting Rules Consult online, send an email to rick@informedathlete.com or call our office at 913-766-1235.

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Medical Hardship Waiver Reminders for Fall Sport Athletes

Many college fall sport teams are approaching the midpoint of their season and some teams may have already started the second half of their season.

It’s important to know that a student-athlete can’t compete in their sport after the midpoint of their season if they hope to qualify for a Medical Hardship Waiver.

The rules for a Hardship Waiver differ somewhat between the various levels of college athletics (NCAA Division I, Division II, etc). However, the general rule of thumb is that student-athletes can’t appear in more than 30% of the season for their sport.

We shared another article about Medical Hardship Waivers a few weeks ago, but if you missed it, you can find it through the link below:

https://informedathlete.com/medical-hardship-waivers-does-your-student-athlete-qualify/

If you have questions about Hardship Waivers (whether Medical or otherwise), schedule a Waivers and Appeals Consult online, or you can call us at 913-766-1235 or send an email to rick@informedathlete.com.

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College Athletes To Be Considered “Employees” of Their Universities??

Recently, the General Counsel for the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) sent a memo to regional offices indicating that student-athletes are considered employees under the National Labor Relations Act.

The memo from NLRB General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo stated that “My intent in issuing this memo is to help educate the public, especially Players at Academic Institutions, colleges and universities, athletic conferences and the NCAA, about the legal position that I will be taking regarding employee status and misclassification in appropriate cases…”

What exactly does that mean, and how might it impact your student-athlete? It’s hard to know at this point.

  • Will college athletes unionize and end up being paid as employees?
  • If so, will they be prepared to pay the appropriate taxes? Will that mean the end of athletic scholarships? (Which aren’t taxed on the portions that cover educational expenses of tuition, fees, books, etc.) Could it also mean the end of Pell Grants for student-athletes?
  • If athletes at a private institution are successful in forming a union, does that mean that all athletes will need to pay union dues?
  • Could that also result in a significant reduction in donations to athletic departments from alumni and boosters that have been used to fund many sports teams and facilities?

It is important to note that the General Counsel’s memo included the statement “…it is my position that the scholarship football players at issue in Northwestern University, and similarly situated Players at Academic Institutions, are employees under the Act.” (She was referring to the National Labor Relations Act.) Therefore, she is initially referring to scholarship athletes at a private institution.

As I skimmed through different media sources after hearing about this, here are a few of the opinions that I came across:

  • Darren Heitner of Heitner Legal pointed out that the National Labor Relations Act only applies to private employers and that public colleges and universities aren’t directly impacted. However, he shared that they may be indirectly impacted as members of private entities (meaning the conferences and the NCAA).
  • Michael McCann wrote for Sportico that while Abruzzo is not a voting board member of the NLRB, she certainly does have influence over future votes by the five-member NLRB Board. He also shared that Abruzzo rejects the term “student-athlete” which has been the standard term the NCAA has used in referring to athletes at NCAA member colleges for many years.
  • University of Illinois law professor Michael LeRoy believes that Abruzzo is “…inviting a petition from players to form a union at a private institution.”

As if we haven’t had enough change over the past few months with the revision to the NCAA One-Time Transfer Rule, and the permissibility of Name, Image and Likeness opportunities, it appears there may still be more to come.

We’ll keep you updated when more specific information about this topic becomes available.

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