According to multiple reports, the NCAA Board of Governors has adopted the Division I Council’s recommendation to pause the eligibility clock for all fall student-athletes for the 2020-21 athletic year.
Fall sports student-athletes can now compete in their season, whether its played in the fall or the spring, this year and retain their year of eligibility. This applies for freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and seniors in 2020 who will all get to compete as freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and seniors again in 2021. All while a new crop of freshmen arrive in 2021.
There are still conflicting reports coming out regarding how this will affect scholarship limits. One such report states seniors who wish to stay and compete another year will not count against scholarship limits for the 2021-22 academic year while underclassmen can receive another year of eligibility if they choose, but it will count against future scholarship limits.
With Liberty football announcing a 10-game 2020 schedule on Wednesday, it will be interesting to see how this rule affects the Flames. Head Coach Hugh Freeze could elect to let all players compete this season, not holding back any that he would otherwise redshirt, creating much more depth for Liberty this season which could be a huge advantage as Liberty still seeks to build towards a full FBS roster.
Other Liberty fall sports this affects include women’s field hockey, volleyball, men’s and women’s soccer, and men’s and women’s cross country.
