A step toward more equitable transfer rules for NCAA Division I athletes has been taken, as the committee responsible for those regulations is gathering feedback from membership.
For years, NCAA D1 athletes who have wanted to transfer from one school to another have had to jump through many hoops in order to continue playing their sport at their new institution. While no changes are currently pending, a step toward possible modification of those hoops has been taken.
According to a press release from the NCAA, the D1 Transfer Group has sent a survey to athletic administrators, school faculty, school presidents and sport coaches to gather their feedback on the sweeping changes that the group has been considering.
The potential changes include removing the requirement for athletes to get permission from their current sports’ coaches for coaches at other schools to contact the athlete. That would instead be a process that is initiated by the athlete with a simple form. Graduate athletes could be allowed to receive financial aid throughout the duration of their academic program as well.
While those changes would favor the athlete, there is a part of the proposal that acts as a counter-balance. If an athlete were to explore transfer opportunities, the school that the athlete is currently enrolled with would have the option to discontinue the athlete’s athletic scholarship based on that decision.
This comes on the heels of early recruitment restrictions being tested in men’s lacrosse, and is part of the NCAA’s ongoing mission to regulate the complicated and enormous web of college athletics.
Fans should note that this doesn’t mean that these changes are pending. The group is simply gathering more information from the people these changes would affect most. It’s entirely possible still that none of these changes, or any version of them, could actually take place.
If these changes as currently proposed do take effect at some point, however, it’s a great step toward putting the athletes back in charge of their own collegiate experience. The narrative that all NCAA member institutions have spun for years is that in exchange for their work for the schools, the compensation the athletes receive is a free education. However, if an athlete were to find a better educational opportunity at another institution and wish to continue playing their sport, they have to get permission from their coach, a person who has absolutely nothing to do with the athlete’s education. These changes, putting the athlete in charge of the process, would be a step toward rectifying that philosophical contradiction.
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How long it would be after these surveys are completed that the group will make a decision on which if any changes to enact isn’t clear. Regardless of whether these changes take place soon, the fact that it’s being investigated to this extent is a good sign.