How the NCAA's New Age-Based Model Affects Florida's Denzel Aberdeen

The NCAA Division I Cabinet on Tuesday approved a "five-for-five" eligibility model for student-athletes, which gives all players up to five years of eligibility if they enroll in college no later than the academic year after their 19th birthday, effectively eliminating the traditional redshirt.

For Florida's Denzel Aberdeen, who just completed his fourth year of college at Kentucky before transferring back to Florida, he still has to wait on a decision from the NCAA regarding his waiver for a fifth year.

While the new NCAA eligibility model, which is expected to become final on Wednesday, gives those currently eligible additional years, players who have already exhausted their eligibility, such as Aberdeen, are not included and will not retroactively receive another year. Additionally, the NCAA made it clear that waivers for another year will not be available.

"Under the age-based eligibility model, waivers will not be available — including clock extensions and waivers previously granted for hardships, seasons of competition and delayed enrollment," the NCAA's announcement read.

So where does this leave Aberdeen, who already filed his waiver prior to the NCAA's ruling?

Florida Gators guard Denzel Aberdeen spent three seasons at Florida before transferring to Kentucky. | Kyle Lander / Gators Illustrated

Head coach Todd Golden already expressed confidence that, regardless of NCAA rules, Aberdeen will receive his fifth year of eligibility due to his lack of on-court time as a freshman. As a true freshman during the 2022-23 season, Aberdeen averaged just 3.4 minutes across 12 total appearances, totaling just 40.8 minutes.

Golden called it a "common sense situation."

"This isn't a 27-year-old trying to play his eighth year in college at his sixth different school. This is a 22-year-old within his fifth-year clock coming back to get his degree," he said. "And I think it would be a really weird stance to try to fight him from playing. Now if he had played 30 games and played 15 minutes a night, we wouldn't be going down this path. But to me there's a common sense approach on Denzel that I think should be solved pretty quickly."

Athletic director Scott Stricklin agrees.

Earlier this month, Stricklin said Florida would support "whatever path he wanted to attempt" should the NCAA reject his waiver, including getting a judge to grant a temporary restraining order. Golden said pursuing a TRO would be a "last resort" and that he doesn't "anticipate us having to get there."

Nonetheless, it is on the table.

"I think the unique circumstances of Denzel's case, considering he's coming back to a place he started to get his degree, I think the right thing to do is to let him have that year," Stricklin said. "If he gets denied, I don't know what decision Denzel will make, but I think we would support whatever decision, whatever path he wanted to attempt. I do think the right thing to do is, if we're going to go to a five-for-five, and given the variety of standards we've had up to this point, it makes sense to give that kid that year."

CBS Sports' Jon Rothstein, citing attorneys Darren Heitner and Ryan Downton, reported that over 70 players from the 2022 recruiting class have expressed interest in joining litigation efforts after the NCAA's announcement.

Aberdeen has not publicly discussed his future, but for what it is worth, he was included in Florida's jersey number update and has been participating in the team's offseason workouts.

For now, though, he and Florida will wait to see what the NCAA decides regarding his specific waiver before any other moves are made.

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