NCAA, Ohio AG reach agreement in two-time transfer lawsuit

In the leadup to a key hearing Dec. 27, the NCAA has agreed to allow college athletes who have transferred more than once to be immediately eligible to play, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost announced Friday.

Yost and his counterparts in six other states filed a federal antitrust lawsuit last week to challenge the NCAA on its rules governing transfer eligibility. Currently, all players are given the ability to transfer schools one time while being immediately eligible to play. Those who have transferred more than once often need to receive a waiver in order to play right away.

A U.S. District Court judge for the Northern District of West Virginia installed a temporary restraining order on Wednesday, and the NCAA said at the time it would not enforce the old rules during that 14-day window.

However, that led to concern that athletes who played during the restraining order window would lose a year of eligibility if the final ruling did not go in their favor at a hearing on Dec. 27.

Yost said Friday evening that the NCAA agreed to his motion that converted the temporary restraining order into a preliminary injunction and promised no “retaliation” against players who play during the next 14 days.

“This is a huge win for the athletes, for the fans and for the rule of law,” Yost wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

In a statement Friday, the NCAA said that “given the unprecedented decision by the courts earlier this week, the NCAA has reached an agreement with the States to convert the temporary restraining order into a preliminary injunction through the remainder of the 2023-24 NCAA championship season.

“This action provides clarity for student-athletes and member schools for the remainder of the academic year — any multiple-time transfer student-athlete who competes this season will be subject to the same eligibility and use of a season of competition rules as all other student-athletes.”

The college basketball players affected by the ruling include Joe Bamisile at VCU, Jalen Cook at LSU, Keylan Boone at UNLV and RaeQuan Battle and Noah Farrakhan at West Virginia.

—Field Level Media