NCAA adopts new transfer guidelines that will hurt student-athletes

The NCAA is trying to provide some guidelines when it comes to transfers and who will be eligible to play right away. But these guidelines feel like a quick fix that will cause more problems than they’ll eliminate.

Transfers were the story of the offseason. The transfer portal took on a life of its own over the last several months with dozens and dozens of college football and basketball players entering the portal with the intent of looking for better opportunities elsewhere.

Notable players who went through the transfer portal include Justin Fields who went from Georgia to Ohio State and Tate Martell who went from Ohio State to Miami. Both players petitioned the NCAA for a waiver to allow them to play in 2019 instead of sitting out the season per NCAA transfer rules.

Both players were granted eligibility and now the NCAA is trying to crack down on the waiver process and providing some structure and clarity when it comes to who will be granted these waivers and who won’t.

The case of Martell is especially noteworthy because, from the public perception, he transferred from Ohio State after Fields transferred in and was ruled eligible, thus making his way to the starting quarterback job that much more difficult. Martell transfers to Miami and is ruled eligible and college free agency was officially underway.

The NCAA wants to prevent players from jumping from one school to the other when they get a better opportunity.

The NCAA has no such issues when it comes to coaches jumping from one school to the other when they get a better opportunity.

The NCAA has never been about being fair, but the transfer guidelines, albeit not entirely fair for the players, is attempting to remove the uncertainty surrounding the why players are transferring.

In some cases, players are essentially forced to transfer when the coach says there isn’t a scholarship available any longer or they simply are urged to look elsewhere. In those cases, the NCAA will require additional documentation to prove the student-athlete is in good standing academically and working toward his degree at the new school. Additionally, the athletic director from the former school must declare whether the student-athlete would be able to return to the team and any reasons given for the player who is transferring.

Illinois tight end Luke Ford is another player who entered the transfer portal this offseason, but unlike Fields and Martell, the NCAA didn’t grant him immediate eligibility. Ford transferred from Georgia to Illinois to be closer to his grandparents who are in failing health. Ford is from Carterville, IL, about 190 miles south of Champaign, but the NCAA has a rule that the new school must be within 100 miles of the student-athlete’s family or support system.

This is a giant flaw in the system. Ford didn’t have any other major colleges within 100 miles of his home. The NCAA needs to fix that, instead, they’re introducing more paperwork and more checks and balances to make sure no one is gaming the system.

In short, the NCAA is trying to instill directions and guidelines that will make the waivers that Fields, Martell and others received less frequent. But it’s going to lead to tense stand-offs and potential embarrassment for schools and head coaches. The NCAA tried to fix something that wasn’t entirely a problem and instead run the risk of breaking something that didn’t need fixing.

All the while, ignoring the restraints of the 100-mile rule and the fact that transfers shouldn’t have to sit in the first place. Let the players play where they want to play.

Football, men’s and women’s basketball, hockey and baseball are the only NCAA sports that force transfers to sit out. Why is it okay for other sports to allow transfers to play without sitting, but athletes in these sports are penalized?

The NCAA should form a committee to address that.