The new age of college sports free agency is here.
The Division I Council is expected to approve new uniform NCAA transfer legislation this week, which will allow undergraduate athletes in all sports to move freely one time without having to sit out, multiple people with knowledge of the situation told The Athletic. The Council was originally supposed to vote on this legislation last January, but the vote was delayed following the receipt of a letter from the Department of Justice that touched on the transfer proposal but largely focused on name, image and likeness legislation.
This week, the Council will meet on Wednesday and Thursday to resolve the transfer issue as well as a host of other topics, including what the post-June 1 recruiting calendar will look like. Nothing the group votes on is considered final until the meeting officially concludes on Thursday.
The transfer topic is expected to be divided into two votes. The first is the base part of the one-time transfer proposal, which will allow all college athletes, including football and men’s basketball players, to transfer one time and receive immediate eligibility. Currently, all but five sports operate under such a system. This would likely take effect immediately, sources said. “The genie’s been out of the bottle on this for a while now,” one said.
The second part of the vote is whether or not there will be notification dates for those transferring and, if so, when they will be. The proposal includes a May 1 notification date for fall/winter athletes to tell their school they are leaving and a July 1 deadline for spring athletes.
