Tag Archive for: NCAA waivers

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Don’t Believe These 5 College Eligibility Myths

Over the past several weeks, I’ve been contacted by a number of athletes or families who have been given incorrect information regarding seasons of eligibility or the opportunity for a waiver for another season.

These “myths” may have been found in an online article or may have been given to an athlete directly by a coach or a recruiter and include:

“Our son qualifies for a Pavia Waiver to have another season of eligibility.”

 It is true that the NCAA issued a “blanket waiver” regarding seasons of eligibility in the wake of the lawsuit that had been filed against the NCAA by Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia, but that waiver is no longer available.

“If you don’t have any statistics in a game, you don’t use a season of eligibility.”

That myth was provided by a JUCO coach to a football athlete whose only participation was to be the holder on field goals and PAT’s.  Think about this – IF that were true, most offensive linemen would never be charged with a season of eligibility!!

 “As long as you graduate from your junior college, you can be eligible to compete when you transfer to a four-year university.” 

Graduation from a JUCO is often required to be eligible at an NCAA program, but there are often other academic requirements as well.  Those requirements can depend on factors such as your high school academic record as well as how many semesters (or quarters) you have attended a JUCO.

“My daughter participated in less than 20 percent of her season so shouldn’t be charged with a season of eligibility.” 

That is true when an athlete is participating in an NAIA athletic program, but does not apply in the NCAA, except in specific situations.

“My coach told me that playing on the JV team does not count as a season of eligibility.”

 In most situations, depending upon the sport and the college division or level, any amount of competition when representing your college or university counts as using a season of eligibility.

Do You Have Questions?

To discuss your athlete’s past participation or their future options for eligibility, schedule a confidential Eligibility Consult online, e-mail rick@informedathlete.com or call our office at 913-766-1235.

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Montana Student-Athlete Granted a 9th Year of NCAA Eligibility

Last week, the NCAA approved a waiver granting a University of Montana football student-athlete a 9th year of eligibility after multiple documented injuries disrupted several seasons of participation throughout his career.

Situations like this are rare—but they underscore how the NCAA’s hardship waiver process can provide relief when extraordinary medical circumstances prevent a student-athlete from using their seasons of competition.

How Did He Reach a 9th Year?

Below is a timeline of his career based on publicly available information from the university:

  • 2018 – Underwent surgery prior to the start of the season
  • 2019 – Additional surgery related to the same injury
  • 2020 – Knee surgery following a summer injury (also the COVID eligibility relief year)
  • 2021 – Redshirt season
  • 2022 – Competed the full season
  • 2023 – Suffered another injury during training camp
  • 2024 – Played in the majority of the season
  • 2025 – Competed the full season
  • 2026 – Approved for a 9th year to complete a 4th season of competition

Why This Matters for Other Student-Athletes

This case illustrates how the NCAA may consider:

  • Repeated, documented medical hardships
  • Season-ending injuries occurring early in a season
  • The impact of the COVID relief year
  • Detailed medical documentation and institutional support
  • A clear history showing the athlete did not receive the intended competitive opportunities

Each waiver request is evaluated individually, and outcomes depend heavily on medical records, timelines, and how the case is presented.

Do You Have Questions About a Possible Additional Year of Eligiblity?

For the past 18 years, we have assisted hundreds of college student-athletes successfully navigate through the waivers and appeal process to continue playing the sport they  love.

If your student-athlete has experienced injuries, missed seasons, or other circumstances that may qualify for an extra year, we can answer your questions, discuss their specific situation, and provide options to consider.

To get started, schedule a confidential waivers and appeals consult online, call our office at 913-766-1235 or send an email to rick@informedathlete.com.

 

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Frequently Asked Questions This Time of Year

With fall sports and classes starting, here’s a sample of some of the questions we frequently get this time of year: 

  • I’ve started practice with my college team, but I’m not sure this is the right fit for me and I’m thinking about leaving. Will that hurt my eligibility?
  • When does my eligibility “clock” start?
  • Will I be considered a transfer athlete if I leave this team after starting practices at this college?
  • What happens to my eligibility if I withdraw from classes after starting the semester?
  • My new coach just informed me that I likely won’t receive any playing time this season.  Do I have any options to transfer at this late date?  Or, could I take a gap year? 
  • I just learned that I may not be able to be eligible at my new college this year because I don’t have enough transferable credit hours.  Do I have any options for a waiver at this point?
  • How do I redshirt at the NCAA Division III level?

Do you have questions like these or others? 

We can help you in a confidential phone, Video, or What’s App consultation.  At one of these links, select a consultation:  Eligibility Issues Consult, a Transfer Consult, or a Scholarship Strategies Consult.  Don’t worry about whether you’re choosing the correct category of consultation.

Regardless of which category you choose, we will discuss your athlete’s specific situation, answer all your questions, and explain what options your athlete can consider.  Your privacy is our highest priority, therefore everything discussed is held in the highest confidence.  

You can also contact us directly by calling our office at 913-766-1235 or by sending an email to rick@informedathlete.com.

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What to Ask Your School Before Your Waiver is Submitted to the NCAA

When an NCAA university is preparing a waiver or appeal on your athlete’s behalf to be sent directly to the NCAA national office, it’s important to have a candid conversation with the compliance administrator at your athlete’s university prior to the waiver or appeal being submitted.

My recommendation is for you to ask the compliance administrator “If the initial waiver is denied, are you willing to submit an appeal to give our athlete one more chance for approval?”

Here’s why:

  • When a waiver is submitted to the NCAA, but is denied, the official waiver decision from the NCAA will indicate to the university “If you accept this decision, click “I Accept” below.” If that box is checked, it indicates the case is closed and cannot be appealed.
  • If that box is NOT checked, then the appeal must be submitted within 30 days of the date that the first NCAA decision was issued.

We have seen situations in which an athlete or family wanted to know about their rights to appeal the denial of a waiver decision by the NCAA, only to have the university tell them “It’s too late to appeal, we’ve already accepted the NCAA’s decision.” It then becomes very difficult to gain the opportunity to appeal.

Do You Have Questions?

If you’re interested in a confidential consultation regarding a possible waiver situation, schedule a Waivers and Appeals Consultation online. We will answer all your questions and discuss specific options available to your athlete.

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So, your student-athlete isn’t academically eligible at their NCAA school this year…

If your student-athlete has been told that they won’t be academically eligible at their NCAA school this year or this semester and you don’t know what to do, Informed Athlete can help.  We’ll discuss the situation with you to advise possible options that your student-athlete may be able to consider.

Possible options – which can be stressful when there’s very little time to make a decision – might include enrolling at a different college, returning to a junior college for another semester, or discussing a possible academic waiver with your athlete’s college.

A waiver may be possible when there is sufficient documentation of a circumstance that impacted your athlete’s academic performance when they have an otherwise strong academic record.

In a confidential Waivers and Appeals consultation, we will answer your questions and explain the directives that the NCAA uses to review waiver applications. We’ll also discuss the type of supporting documentation that will need to be submitted along with the application.

We also routinely assist athletes and their families by reviewing the athlete’s personal statements and suggesting possible revisions to have more impact and make a stronger case for approval.

If you have questions, please call us at 913-766-1235 or send an email to rick@informedathlete.com.

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NCAA, NAIA, and JUCO Season of Competition Rules and Waivers for Spring 2021

The Spring semester has started or will be starting soon at most colleges across the country. This is a good opportunity to remind our readers about the current rules and waivers that are in effect regarding seasons of competition and eligibility.

I’ve summarized the information by level and broken it down by Spring Sports and Fall Sports.

As you review the information, please keep in mind that the rules and/or waivers that have been approved are likely different for the traditional Spring sports (baseball, softball, track and field, etc.) as compared to those that have been approved for traditional Fall sports that will now be competing this Spring (volleyball, soccer, etc.).

If you have questions about these waivers at any level of college athletics, contact us by writing to rick@informedathlete.com or by calling 913-766-1235. You can also schedule a confidential Eligibility Issues consultation online.

NCAA Division I Current Rulings

NCAA Division I student-athletes in Fall or Winter sports who are eligible to compete during their season will not be charged with a season of competition used, regardless of the number of contests or dates of competition that they appear in.

For Division I student-athletes in Spring sports, the NCAA has not issued any guidance at this point in time. I’m sure that the Division I leaders don’t want to further “clog up” and overload their Spring sport rosters in the next year or two by giving Spring athletes a 2nd free season of eligibility.

Therefore, I believe that Division I Spring sport athletes should move forward under the assumption that any appearance in a game this Spring for their team will be counted as using one of their permissible seasons of competition.

NCAA Division II Season of Competition Waiver Status

The NCAA Division II Management Council has granted blanket waivers for Fall and Winter sport student-athletes to receive an additional season of competition and an additional year (two semesters or three quarters) added to their eligibility clock.

DII Fall and Winter sport athletes will receive these waivers regardless of the number of games they appear in or the number of games that their team is able to play during this 2020-21 academic year AS LONG AS they are eligible for competition.

Waivers for an additional season of competition and an additional year of eligibility are also possible for Division II Spring sport athletes.

HOWEVER, the rules regarding a waiver for Spring are different.

For Spring sport athletes to qualify for these waivers, they must be eligible to compete and the individual athlete and their team must not participate in more than 50% of the sport’s maximum contests or dates of competition.

If a Division II team or individual student-athlete does participate in more than 50% of the maximum number of competitions, those athletes will be charged with a season of competition used and a term (or terms) of enrollment toward their 10 semester or 15 quarter limit if the athlete appeared in a contest.

NCAA Division III Waiver for ALL Current Student-Athletes

The NCAA Division III Presidents Council has approved a blanket waiver that will benefit ALL eligible D3 student-athletes this year. These student-athletes can compete in up to a full season in their sport without being charged with a season of participation or a term of attendance toward their 10-semester or 15-quarter limit.

An important factor to note is that a Division III athlete can receive these waivers as long as the athlete is or was eligible for competition during at least one term of the 2020-21 academic year.

NAIA Season of Competition Waiver Status

The current status of waivers for NAIA student-athletes happens to be the same as for NCAA Division II student-athletes described above.

NAIA Fall and Winter sport student-athletes will be able to receive a waiver regardless of the number of contests that they compete in, as long as they are academically eligible for competition.

Spring sport athletes will only receive a waiver if they and their team compete in no more than 50% of the maximum number of contests in that particular sport.

NJCAA Will Not Count 2020-21 Sport Seasons

The NJCAA Board of Regents has granted a blanket waiver that will allow student-athletes in ALL sports – Fall, Winter, and Spring – to participate during the 2020-21 academic year without using a year of eligibility.

This decision provides flexibility for current JUCO athletes regarding their opportunity to possibly compete for an additional season at this level before transferring to an NCAA or an NAIA university.

However, it will be important for NJCAA athletes to know that there are specific academic requirements that they must satisfy for a successful transfer to an NCAA or an NAIA four-year college.

For questions about the rules and requirements for transfer eligibility from a two-year college to a four-year program, schedule a confidential Eligibility Issues Consult online, or contact us directly at 913-766-1235 or rick@informedathlete.com.

CCCAA Spring Participation Plan

The California Community College Athletic Association has not issued any updates on their website regarding waivers or season participation plans since July 9, 2020. Their sport participation plan is that all sport seasons will take place this Spring.

The following sports were scheduled to begin organized practices on Monday, January 18 with competition beginning in early February:

  • Basketball
  • Cross Country
  • Football
  • Women’s Golf
  • Soccer
  • Women’s Volleyball
  • Water Polo
  • Wrestling

Remaining CCCAA sports are scheduled to begin organized practices on March 27 with the first date of competition in those sports being April 10.

Do You Have Questions?

If you have questions about these waivers at any level of college athletics, contact us by sending an email to rick@informedathlete.com or calling 913-766-1235.

You can also schedule a confidential Eligibility Issues consultation online if you’d like information and assistance specific to your student-athlete’s situation.

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Recent NCAA & NJCAA Rulings That Impact Student-Athletes’ Eligibility

The NCAA has made several rulings recently that will impact student-athletes’ eligibility at Division I, II, and III.  In addition, the NJCAA has recently granted a blanket waiver for student-athletes in all sports.  These rulings are summarized below in this post.

NCAA Division I Midyear Enrollee Ruling

“Emergency legislation” which impacts midyear enrollees at a Division I program specifically for Fall sport athletes has been adopted by the NCAA Division I Council.

This ruling applies to both transfer athletes as well as initial enrollees from high school or prep school.

This recent decision revises a position taken earlier this Fall by Division I which would have prevented athletes in a traditional Fall sport from transferring at midyear and then being immediately eligible in the Spring at another university.

  • This will now be possible for Fall Sports athletes who satisfy certain conditions.
  • Student-athletes who are considering such a transfer (or midyear enrollment from high school) must satisfy specific conditions in order to take advantage of this ruling.

NCAA Division II Winter Sport Athletes Receive Expanded Eligibility Waiver

Recently, the NCAA Division II Management Council granted winter sport student-athletes an additional season of competition and an additional year (two semesters or three quarters) added to their eligibility clock.

All eligible winter sport athletes in Division II will receive this additional opportunity regardless of the number of games they appear in or the number of games that their team is able to play during this 2020-21 academic year. This is consistent with action taken previously for Division II Fall sport athletes.

NCAA Division III Grants Waiver for ALL current Student-Athletes

The NCAA Division III Presidents Council has approved a blanket waiver that will benefit ALL D3 student-athletes this year. They can compete in up to a full season in their sport without being charged with a season of participation or a term of attendance toward their 10-semester or 15-quarter limit.

While the NCAA’s press release did not provide this level of detail, you can be certain that an athlete must be academically eligible to compete this season in order to receive the benefit of this blanket waiver.

NJCAA Grants Waiver for Student-Athletes in ALL Sports

The NJCAA Board of Regents has granted a blanket waiver that will allow athletes at NJCAA member colleges in ALL sports to participate during the 2020-21 academic year without using a year of eligibility.

This decision obviously provides flexibility for current JUCO athletes regarding their opportunity to possibly compete for an additional season at this level before transferring to an NCAA or an NAIA university.

However, it will be important for them to keep in mind that there are specific academic requirements that they must satisfy for a successful transfer to the “next level.”

Do You Have Questions or Need Advice?

If you have questions about these recently rulings or any other eligibility situation, we can help answer your questions and discuss your student-athlete’s specific situation and options.

Schedule a confidential Eligibility Issues consult online, call us at 913-766-1235 or send an email to rick@informedathlete.com.

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Recently Announced NCAA Waivers Will Impact College Rosters at Every Level

It seems that every college athletic organization and division is granting waivers for student-athletes to have an additional year of eligibility, or to have the season treated as if it never happened.

This is coming at the same time that some colleges are dropping sports programs because of the financial impact that the pandemic has had on college athletic budgets.

At some point, these actions will have a major impact on rosters at every level and, in some cases, already have.

Currently, college coaches are focused on coaching this current season and managing rosters that are changing frequently depending on testing outcomes. At this time, a student-athlete’s current eligibility is primary; their future eligibility status may not be a priority.

If you are concerned and would like to discuss how these changes could affect your student-athlete’s eligibility and place on a team roster, we can help sift through the confusion and discuss possible options and scenarios so you can make informed decisions about their current and future situation.

Schedule a confidential eligibility consult online or by calling us at 913-766-1235, or sending an email to rick@informedathlete.com.

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A Brief Summary of NCAA COVID-Related Waivers

Recently, I participated in a panel discussion via Zoom regarding the various impacts of COVID on college athletics, ranging from eligibility questions to Title IX implications of sports programs being cut due to budget impacts.

Here’s a brief summary of the information I shared with participants regarding actions taken and waivers approved by the NCAA:

2020 Spring Sports – Athletes will not be charged with a season of competition as long as they were eligible during the season

  • Athletes in D-1 granted an additional year of eligibility on their clock
  • Athletes in D-2 granted an additional year if in their last year of eligibility
  • Athletes in D-3 treated as if semester “didn’t happen”

Fall 2020 Sport Athletes

  • D1 athletes not charged with a season and granted another year of eligibility
  • D2 athletes not charged with a season and granted another two semesters of eligibility
  • D3 athletes not charged with a season if their team doesn’t complete more than 50% of max schedule. Also granted an additional 2 semesters.

20-21 Winter and Spring Sport athletes

  • D1 undetermined at this time
  • D2 athletes not charged with a season if their team doesn’t complete more than 50% of max schedule. Also granted additional 2 semesters.
  • D3 athletes not charged with a season if their team doesn’t complete more than 50% of max schedule. Also granted additional 2 semesters.

Do you need have questions or need advice?

Contact us at 913-766-1235 or at rick@informedathlete.com with questions about your athlete’s eligibility, or schedule a confidential Waivers & Appeals consult.

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Can a student-athlete get a season do-over?

In most cases, any amount of participation in a game or contest against another team counts as a season of eligibility used.

The only way to get that season “over again” will be through a hardship waiver if the athlete incurs an injury or illness that is serious enough to be documented by a physician as a “season-ending” injury or illness.

There are specific limitations for the number of contests that an athlete can participate in and still qualify for a hardship waiver.  Here’s a link to an article we’ve written on this topic:    http://informedathlete.com/medical-hardship-waivers/

If your student-athlete is considering the possibility of a waiver, call us at 913-766-1235 if you’d like to discuss your situation in a private consultation.  

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