Big Ten Considering New Eligibility Rule That Could Shake Up Transfer Landscape
By Brendan Balsamo
On Friday, the Big Ten proposed an idea that would change the landscape of college sports.
According to CBS Sports' Dennis Dodd, in 2019, an under-the-radar proposal was made by the Big Ten Conference that would make first-time transfers immediately eligible in every college sport. Current NCAA rules state that transfers must sit out for one year, unless they are given a waiver by the NCAA, a process that has been questioned throughout the years.
Report: B1G proposes idea of immediate eligibility for first-time transferring student-athletes https://t.co/Sta3GIajKD
— Saturday Tradition (@Tradition) January 31, 2020
According to Dodd, the proposal was made in October, but was put on hold in early November in order for the NCAA Transfer Board to gather more data on the issue. If approved the rule change could be implemented by 2021 at the earliest.
Big scoop by @dennisdoddcbs. Big Ten has "quietly" proposed NCAA legislation allowing one-time transfers in all sports without sitting out a year. Michigan AD Warde Manuel supports it. https://t.co/5WHp4IbQDC
— Stewart Mandel (@slmandel) January 31, 2020
Only five out of the 25 NCAA sports require transfer students to sit out for a year: men's basketball, women's basketball, baseball, football, and hockey. In an era rampant with graduate transfers, the Big Ten feels it's time to change the broken system.
Keep in mind that this rule is only for first-time transfers, but it would still completely change college sports, and for the better.