NCAA recommends opt-out players keep eligibility, extends dead period

The NCAA released a statement for the first time since the Pac-12 and Big10 opted to cancel/postpone their fall sports seasons until 2021:

College athletes who opt out of playing during the 2020-21 school year likely won’t be at risk of losing a season of eligibility.

The NCAA’s Division I Council officially recommended that the Division I Board of Governors implement a rule that would allow players to keep their full remaining eligibility if they decide not to play because of coronavirus concerns.

A player has the ability to make a decision midseason about the dangers of the coronavirus as well. The council is recommending that a player can retain his or her eligibility if they play in half or fewer of a season’s games before opting out.

From the NCAA:

The Council recommended the board provide fall sport student-athletes who compete and then opt out of future participation or have a season cut short due to COVID-19: (1) an extension of their five-year period of eligibility; and (2) an additional season of competition if they participate in 50% or less of the maximum number of competitions allowed in each sport by Division I rules.

Members will further discuss additional Board of Governors requirements, including a prohibition on canceling, reducing or not renewing athletics aid for student-athletes who opt out of participation due to COVID-19 and required medical coverage for COVID-19 if a student contracts the virus through sports participation. Members also will discuss financial aid limits for fall sports. Although that topic was not part of the board’s mandate, some Council members think providing schools some flexibility in this area is important.

While the recommendations aren’t official just yet, they are likely to become official rulings next week at the Division I board meeting. There were no details provided on the financial aid limits that could be discussed.

The recommendations come a day after the Big Ten and the Pac-12 said they wouldn’t have fall sports at all in 2020. Both leagues have said they’re exploring playing football in the spring of 2021.

The NCAA has also opted to extend the recruiting dead period until the end of September–the last extension was due to end on August 31.

The dead period has been in place since March and is a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Council took feedback from coaching associations in making its decision, and most coaching groups recommended the extension through at least Sept. 30. The full Council will consider the dead period again in September.

No in-person recruiting or evaluations can occur in the dead period.

READ MORE: Will there be any more recruiting visits in 2020?