House vs. NCAA

[Thwg777]

I know I’m behind as I don’t follow football much outside of August - December timeframe.

Does anyone know if the recent rulings affect NFL eligibility? I’m no lawyer but have never been able to reconcile why a player must play X years of college to enter the draft. I always thought Sotomayor mucked it up royally 20 years ago when I was in school.

 

[wrmathis]

I know I’m behind as I don’t follow football much outside of August - December timeframe.

Does anyone know if the recent rulings affect NFL eligibility? I’m no lawyer but have never been able to reconcile why a player must play X years of college to enter the draft. I always thought Sotomayor mucked it up royally 20 years ago when I was in school.

im pretty sure its the NFL that makes the rules on when someone can play in the NFL. not college football

 

[A Love Supreme]

Title IX is still a thing, right? Will women athletes be paid equally to the men?

 

[roadkill]

im pretty sure its the NFL that makes the rules on when someone can play in the NFL. not college football

yes, similar to the NBA and one-and-dones.

 

[dressedcheeseside]

yes, similar to the NBA and one-and-dones.

I think the rule mentions so many years after high school, not so many years of college. Player could theoretically skip college, sit out and still play in the NFL.

 

[roadkill]

So...does this open the door for players who went to the NFL with college eligibility remaining, a chance to go back and play college football?

An interesting question. In theory, if NCAA restrictions on getting paid NIL are now out the window, I don't see how they could enforce eligibility restrictions if a player went pro, then decided to return. Not that it would every likely, but I could see being possible.

 

[roadkill]

I think the rule mentions so many years after high school, not so many years of college. Player could theoretically skip college, sit out and still play in the NFL.

This is correct.

 

[forensicbuzz]

I think the rule mentions so many years after high school, not so many years of college. Player could theoretically skip college, sit out and still play in the NFL.

3 years removed from HS.

 

[forensicbuzz]

An interesting question. In theory, if NCAA restrictions on getting paid NIL are now out the window, I don't see how they could enforce eligibility restrictions if a player went pro, then decided to return. Not that it would every likely, but I could see being possible.

5 years to play 4 from first day of matriculation to an institution of higher education.

 

[roadkill]

5 years to play 4 from first day of matriculation to an institution of higher education.

I'm not disputing your comment, but can you provide a link? The reason I ask is...Stetson.

 

[wrmathis]

I'm not disputing your comment, but can you provide a link? The reason I ask is...Stetson.

covid threw all that crap out the window for a while.

 

[RonJohn]

I'm not disputing your comment, but can you provide a link? The reason I ask is...Stetson.

That is the rule. There are some exceptions. Injury years can be appealed and excluded. If you leave school and come back, you can get an exception to the matriculation calendar. The biggest exception was that the 2020 season didn't count as a matriculation year, nor as a playing year. 2020 didn't affect eligibility at all. Stetson had:

2017 Redshirt year -- no year of playing and one year of matriculation
2018 Transferred to JC -- one year of playing and one year of matriculation Total 1 year of playing 2 years of matriculation
2019 back to the mutts and played -- one year of playing and one year of matriculation Total 2 years of playing and 3 years of matriculation
2020 with mutts and played -- Covid year didn't count at all Total 2 years of playing and 3 years of matriculation
2021 with mutts and played -- one year of playing and one year of matriculation Total 3 years of playing and 4 years of matriculation
2022 with mutts and played -- one year of playing and one year of matriculation Total 4 years of playing and 5 years of matriculation

He did follow the same rules as everyone else, and did match the rules that @forensicbuzz posted, with the exception that the Covid year didn't count.

 

[Thwg777]

I attend a fair number of pro games between baseball and NFL - primarily Braves and Falcons. It has never once crossed my mind to ‘donate’ money to help the poor Braves… I purchase tickets in exchange for professional entertainment. If this is what college football becomes, I see it no differently.

 

[Thwg777]

im pretty sure its the NFL that makes the rules on when someone can play in the NFL. not college football

I understand. The way I see it is that back when ‘student athletes’ weren’t allegedly paid, elite ones like Clarett were denied eligibility since they hadn’t served enough years in the free-labor serfdom of college football. Instead of overruling the NFL, and keeping the lines between ‘student-athletes’ and professionals clearer, it contributed the current cluster**** we’re in…

 

[Pappa P]

For those who are interested in more detail concerning the House settlement, the attached Forbes article has a list of 10 issues that reveal more information concerning things like; exactly where will the money come from, private equity involvement, NIL, and Title IX. There are also some comments on price fixing, lawyer fees, scholarship limits, and escalator clauses.

Someone asked if the 21 to 22 million is a cap? The phrase used in the article is "up to 21-22 million". NIL will be in addition to the 22 million.

 

[cpf2001]

The NFL one is interesting since it comes from the league vs the CBA. So it’s a bit different from some other issues with CBAs which become “current player vs future player.”

Because of that i wonder if it might meet a different fate in today’s evironment if another challenge arose.

But I could also see players voting to put it in the CBA to protect their current jobs in that case. Unions can end up with strange edge cases. The CBA, per this article, does reference the rule.

Reconsidering Maurice Clarett and Age Limits in Professional Sports

Twenty years ago, the NFL defeated Maurice Clarett in a case that has had profound impacts on sports law including in a world with NIL and employees.

www.sportico.com

Clarett and the NFL debated whether the rule, which was not in the CBA but was referenced by it, was collectively bargained with the NFLPA. If it had been bargained, the rule would have been exempt from antitrust scrutiny so long as it concerned a mandatory subject of bargaining (wages, hours and conditions of employment). Scheindlin reasoned the rule didn’t concern a mandatory subject of bargaining. It only governed non-employees—that is, players who were not yet in the NFL who, because of the rule, could not enter the NFL or join the NFLPA.

 

[forensicbuzz]

I'm not disputing your comment, but can you provide a link? The reason I ask is...Stetson.

There are lots of appeals (medical, etc.) that can be made for more time. Stetson had a covid year plus a medical year and a redshirt season. He also went down a division and back. 7 years seems right for him. (or 6 without the medical RS season)

 

[forensicbuzz]

The NFL one is interesting since it comes from the league vs the CBA. So it’s a bit different from some other issues with CBAs which become “current player vs future player.”

Because of that i wonder if it might meet a different fate in today’s evironment if another challenge arose.

But I could also see players voting to put it in the CBA to protect their current jobs in that case. Unions can end up with strange edge cases. The CBA, per this article, does reference the rule.

Reconsidering Maurice Clarett and Age Limits in Professional Sports

Twenty years ago, the NFL defeated Maurice Clarett in a case that has had profound impacts on sports law including in a world with NIL and employees.

www.sportico.com

I think that if the Clarett case was re-litigated today, the outcome would be very different.

 

[UgaBlows]

There are lots of appeals (medical, etc.) that can be made for more time. Stetson had a covid year plus a medical year and a redshirt season. He also went down a division and back. 7 years seems right for him. (or 6 without the medical RS season)

What about his lack of academic progress during those 7 years though?

 

[forensicbuzz]

What about his lack of academic progress during those 7 years though?

That’s a different story. Those rules have been messaged for a long time. He may have a ton of credits towards graduation without actually having the right mix to actually graduate. We’d have to see his transcripts. These guys can be a senior in academic progress for a couple of years. Couple that will losing transfer credits and it’s all together possible.