Impact of COVID-19 on NCAA, NAIA, and Junior College Student-Athletes
This post includes the latest updates we have regarding college athletic organizations and the impact on current student-athletes as well as on high school or junior college recruits.
NCAA Spring Sport Competition
NCAA Additional Season of Eligibility
Special Note for NCAA DII and DIII Athletes Currently In Their 10th Semester
NCAA Recruiting
NAIA Current Student-Athletes
NJCAA Student-Athletes & Recruits
CCCAA Current Student-Athletes
A Special Note for Junior College Athletes
- If an athlete is currently attending a junior college and receives an additional year of eligibility from the NJCAA or the CCCAA, be aware that the additional year might not be automatically honored by the NCAA (or NAIA) when a junior college athlete transfers to an NCAA or NAIA program.
- Also, academic eligibility at an NCAA program often depends upon the number of semesters that an athlete attended a junior college as a full-time student. Attending a two-year college for an additional year or semester could possibly have negative consequences on your academic eligibility when you transfer to join an NCAA athletic program.
Advice to Consider
- Be sure that your athlete maintains their focus on their academic coursework to ensure that they have a chance to be eligible next year. While some athletes may become depressed or lose focus on their academics as a result of losing their season, if they don’t successfully complete their classes this semester, it can damage their eligibility for next year.
- Some bedrock NCAA and NAIA rules won’t change if your athlete returns for an extra season next year. For one, they will need to be taking a full-time course load to be eligible for practice and competition next year. Will they be willing and able to pay for another year of college if they’ve already graduated and were originally planning to start their post-college life?
- Because many colleges are moving classes online, make sure that your athlete takes steps to save all of their assignments and can track when an assignment or test was submitted. The last problem you want them to have is an eligibility issue because the professor didn’t receive a test or assignment by the required deadline or didn’t receive it at all.
- In the very unlikely anticipation that schools might possibly “wipe out” their stats for this season, you may want to take a screenshot or photo of the team’s stat sheet on the athletic website to record how many games your athlete appeared in and how many total games were played by the team this season in case that’s needed for a waiver to get another year of eligibility.
- Follow the social media page(s) for your school’s athletic compliance office as they will be posting updates for student-athletes at that particular college. (By the way, you can follow us on Twitter @InformedAthlete or on our Facebook page.)
- If an athlete is currently attending a junior college and receives a waiver for an additional year of eligibility from the NJCAA or the CCCAA, be aware that such a waiver may not be automatically honored by the NCAA (or NAIA) when a junior college athlete transfers to an NCAA or NAIA program. For example, academic eligibility at an NCAA program often depends in part upon the number of semesters that an athlete attended a junior college as a full-time student.
Do you Need Assistance?
If you have questions about how your student-athlete is affected by the current situation, they’re considering a transfer or have questions about their eligibility, we can answer all your concerns and provide options and a scenarios in a confidential consultation.
Schedule a scholarship strategies consult online or by calling us at 913-766-1235 or sending an email to rick@informedathlete.com.