Source: (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) / (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
The NCAA Division I Council voted Monday to allow spring sport athletes to have an additional year of eligibility.
Spring sport athletes such as baseball, softball, track and lacrosse players who saw their seasons disappear to the coronavirus pandemic this year were granted the exemption from a council made up of college sports administrators representing all 32 D-I conferences, plus two members of the student-athlete advisory committee.
According to the NCAA, the agreement will give spring-sport athletes regardless of their year in school a way to get back the season they lost, but it does not guarantee financial aid to the current crop of seniors if they return to play next year.
The council decided that winter sports, such as basketball, wrestling, and hockey, would not be included in the decision because many athletes in those sports had completed all or most of their regular seasons.
NCAA Division I rules allow athletes to have four seasons of competition in a five-year period. According to the NCAA, schools will be allowed to apply for waivers to restore one of those seasons for any athlete who competed while eligible in the spring season shortened by COVID-19 in 2020. After the 2021 spring season, scholarship and roster limits will apply to athletes granted the waiver.
Source: Associated Press and NCCA.org
