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NCAA Division 1 Council met to discuss changing rules for Student-Athletes

By Shereen Rayan

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - MARCH 06: The NCAA logo is seen on the wall as Yeshiva players warmup prior to playing against Worcester Polytechnic Institute during the NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Championship - First Round at Goldfarb Gymnasium on at Johns Hopkins University on March 6, 2020 in Baltimore, Maryland. On Thursday, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announced that Maryland had confirmed three cases of residents with COVID-19, otherwise known as the Coronavirus, prompting Johns Hopkins officials to host the NCAA men's basketball tournament without spectators. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - MARCH 06: The NCAA logo is seen on the wall as Yeshiva players warmup prior to playing against Worcester Polytechnic Institute during the NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Championship - First Round at Goldfarb Gymnasium on at Johns Hopkins University on March 6, 2020 in Baltimore, Maryland. On Thursday, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announced that Maryland had confirmed three cases of residents with COVID-19, otherwise known as the Coronavirus, prompting Johns Hopkins officials to host the NCAA men's basketball tournament without spectators. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /
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Sep 28, 2019; Tucson, AZ, USA; Arizona Wildcats offensive lineman Josh McCauley (50) quarterback Grant Gunnell (17) (middle) and offensive lineman Donovan Laie (78) (right) celebrate after beating the UCLA Bruins at Arizona Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Casey Sapio-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 28, 2019; Tucson, AZ, USA; Arizona Wildcats offensive lineman Josh McCauley (50) quarterback Grant Gunnell (17) (middle) and offensive lineman Donovan Laie (78) (right) celebrate after beating the UCLA Bruins at Arizona Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Casey Sapio-USA TODAY Sports /

Extending Eligibility for Winter Sports

Recently, the NCAA announced that it would extend the eligibility for D1 Winter and Spring Season sports just as it did for the Fall sports when they were cancelled. If a Student-Athlete completes the 2020/2021 school year, they will get an extra year of eligibility to play.

M. Grace Calhoun also chairs this committee. “The pandemic will continue to impact Winter sport seasons in ways we can’t predict. Council members opted to provide for Winter sport student-athletes the same flexibility given spring and fall sports previously,” said Calhoun stating it was the best thing for the student athlete.

In addition to extending eligibility, the committee also discussed and agreed to the following:

  • Division I schools will not be required to sponsor the minimum required number of sports for membership purposes, provided the school indicated on its Sports and Demographics Survey forms that it intended to sponsor the requisite number of sports but cannot due to COVID-19 challenges.
  • Schools also will not be required to sponsor a sport in each season, and multisport conferences are not required to meet minimum sport sponsorship requirements.
  • The Council also agreed to grant a blanket waiver for 2020-21 to allow conferences to earn an automatic bid in fall championships if a minimum of three member schools participated in conference competition in that sport.

What a year 2020 has been! But it seems for the future student athletes, the path is a lot greener! The NCAA was bound to change and adapt their rules as suggested previously, but they probably did it holding their noses.

dark. Next. More on the NCAA on ZonaZealots

The NCAA has suffered a ton of backlash for mismanaging the COVID19 response in allowing each division to make their own rules, and was slapped by the onslaught of states like California who passed a bill allowing for Name and Likeness (Fair Pay to Play Act) pushing the hand of the NCAA to do something. Well, no they had to do something. What do you think about all these new rules?

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