After a summer in which college basketball coaches like Kentucky’s Billy Gillispie made headlines by offering college scholarships to players who were not even enrolled in high school, the NCAA passed legislation changing the age at which student-athletes become prospective student-athletes under NCAA rules for men’s basketball. Under the previous rule, NCAA coaches could work at camps for middle school children and develop a relationship with these athletes while they could not do so for high school players.
Furthermore, the NCAA Legislative Council deferred decision on other proposed rules changes. First, it passed on making a final decision on changing the window for college basketball players with remaining eligibility to withdraw from the NBA draft from two months to ten days. Second, it declined to rule as to whether women’s beach volleyball would be added as an emerging sport. Third, it passed on deciding whether to allow student-athletes to take online courses to comply with NCAA academic requirements. Finally, it did not rule on whether to extend the length of the college baseball season. Last year, the NCAA implemented a uniform start date, which pushed back the beginning of many teams’ seasons several weeks and forced teams to play a more condensed schedule with more mid-week games (meaning more missed class time).
However, the NCAA Legislation Council did make final rulings on some proposals. It defeated a proposal to increase the number of baseball scholarships from 11.7 to 14. It also removed four women’s sports (archery, badminton, team handball, and synchronized swimming) from the emerging sports list due to low participation.
