The Class of 2022 Has Another Season of Eligibility. What Does That Mean for Mizzou and Mark Mitchell?

There's no wilder place to be than the world of college athletics.

Imagine asking a college sports fan in 2016 what they imagined the NCAA would look like in 2026. It'd be difficult for them to predict the realm of chaos the transfer portal has morphed into, with more than 10,000 football players and more than 5,000 basketball players entering their respective portals in the 2026 cycle. It'd be inconceivable for them to predict that NBA draftees, veteran G-Leaguers and 26-year-olds would be suiting up by joining teams midseason.

Over the last few seasons, eligibility had become a myth of some sorts. It used to be relatively clear: student-athletes were allowed to compete in four seasons across five academic years — once those four seasons are complete, so are their playing days.

That got muddy quickly. Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia spearheaded the lawsuit for juco years to not count against NCAA eligibility. Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss was one of many to filed a lawsuit for an extra medical redshirt to gain a season of eligibility. Now-George Mason center James Nnaji returned to college basketball midseason after being selected with the No. 31 overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft and playing in two Summer League.

The NCAA's guidelines of eligibility were frequently being challenged, with the players winning the legal battles far more often than not. Those and plenty more led the NCAA to introduce a new eligibility model in June, in efforts to reign in the chaos.

NCAA Adopts 5-in-5 Eligibility Rule, Does Not Include Class of 2022

"The Division I Cabinet on (June 23) unanimously approved a sweeping overhaul of eligibility rules for student-athletes, permitting Division I student-athletes up to five years of eligibility if they enroll in college no later than the academic year after their 19th birthday. The new rule streamlines a significant portion of the Division I rule book by eliminating season-of-competition limits, sport-specific eligibility and redshirt rules, and eligibility extension waivers."

In theory, the new 5-in-5 model makes the rules quite clear, giving each student-athlete five seasons of eligibility in nearly every scenario, eliminating waivers, traditional redshirts and medical redshirts. Surely this appeased everyone, right?

Wrong. So very wrong.

Student-athletes in the high school class of 2022 who had just exhausted their eligibility by competing in a fourth seasons were not grandfathered into the new eligibility model. Student-athletes in the 2022 recruiting class who had played three seasons and redshirted one were included in the new model, and still had eligibility. It doesn't exactly seem fair to the former class of 2022 athletes that all their peers would get to continue careers in college athletics while they were kicked to the curb.

Class of 2022 Players Begin to Sue For Eligibility

As had worked in plenty of other eligibility-based lawsuit cases, players from the class of 2022 began to sue the NCAA for an extra season of eligibility. Many won.

On July 9, an Ohio judge granted a preliminary injunction to a group of 24 college basketball players who graduated high school in 2022 and subsequently played four seasons in the following four years. The injunction made the players temporarily eligible for the the 2026-27 season. Part of that group includes former Mizzou center Shawn Phillips Jr., who spent the 2025-26 season with the Tigers as an every-game starter.

The most recent example pertaining to Mizzou was the case of former defensive tackle Sterling Webb, who received a temporary restraining order for an injunction to compete in the 2026 season Thursday. Webb was a member of the high school class of 2022, played two seasons at New Mexico State in 2022 and 2023, then spent the following two seasons at Mizzou, where he was a key member of the defensive line.

Former student-athletes around the nation realized they had quite an easy path to gaining an extra season of eligibility, as the NCAA was losing many of the legal battles. On Friday morning, rumblings swirled that former Mizzou forward Mark Mitchell was among class of 2022 athletes looking to return to college — Mitchell had signed an Exhibit-10 deal with the Denver Nuggets and played in Summer League.

Hours later, it was announced that an additional 17 college basketball players from the 2022 class were granted an injunction by a Tennessee state court to be eligible in the 2026-27 season. At this point, it seemed the legal battles were procedural more than anything, bringing us to the most recent stop, as of the morning of Aug. 1.

NCAA Ordered to Deem Entire Class of 2022 Eligible for Fifth Season of Competition

On Friday evening, Colorado judge Charlotte Sweeney granted a preliminary junction to the entire class of 2022 that NCAA to deem the them eligible for a fifth season of competition, as first reported by Sam C. Ehrlich.

Here's a few excerpts from the order stating the players' case for eligibility, which ultimately won.

"Plaintiffs see the world much more practically and simply," the order states. "They want to be treated like all other athletes under the Rule, which is to say they want to be eligible for a fifth season of competitive play... And they identify a practical alternative to achieving their goal that would be entirely consistent with the Rule: granting them a waiver under the Rule for an additional year of eligibility, notwithstanding they are otherwise ineligible for such a year based on the year they graduated high school and the number of seasons in which they have competed so far."

"Plaintiffs argue that the 'balance of equities tips sharply in favor' of granting their request for relief because, absent injunctive relief, they will 'permanently lose their final season of collegiate athletic competition,' the order states. "Moreover, an injunction that preserves this ability imposes a “minimal burden” on the NCAA, given that granting Plaintiffs injunctive relief would 'mean [only] that, for one season and for a defined class of athletes, the same eligibility framework applies to [Plaintiffs] as their teammates.'"

This, obviously, unleashed a giant batch of players freshly eligible to play college sports in in the 2026-27 season. There's not too many Mizzou football players it applies to — Webb is one, who's return has been announced by UM System Board of Curators member Bob Blitz. Linebacker Khalil Jacobs, who was a key contributor on Missouri's 2025 defense, is the other big piece for the football team, although he has been a participant in the New England Patriots' camp.

As for former Tigers newly available on the hardwood, there's the aforementioned Phillips and Mitchell, along with fellow big Jevon Porter. Mitchell, the two-time All-SEC honoree who led the Tigers in scoring in 2025-26, is the most valuable of the bunch and presumably the most likely candidate to return to Mizzou, if both sides want to make the reunion happen.

Mitchell entered the transfer portal shortly after the eligibility ruling Friday evening. While Mitchell could be exploring other collegiate options, his entrance to the portal could also just be a signal that he's returning to the college landscape and waiting for Missouri to make a move — plenty of athletes have entered the portal in search of eligibility with goals of returning to their programs.

Is Mark Mitchell Returning to Mizzou Basketball?

There's a few obstacles Missouri would need to tackle before bringing Mitchell back to the roster.

First, both Mitchell and Missouri would have to want the reunion to happen. There's all the reason to believe such is the case, given Mitchell's sentiment toward the program and the program's reliance on him in the 2025-26 season.

The next question to tackle, which could play into the answer of the first, is how exactly Mitchell could be brought back. Missouri currently has a full, 15-man roster. College basketball programs cannot exceed the 15-player limit, even through walk-ons. Should that rule stay the same, Missouri would need to somehow move off of a player currently on the roster to make room for Mitchell.

Mar 20, 2026; St. Louis, MO, USA; Missouri Tigers forward Mark Mitchell (25) drives to the basket \against the Miami (FL) Hurricanes during the second half during a first round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Enterprise Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

To be quite honest, that doesn't sound much like Dennis Gates, a guy who cares for each of his players as individuals so deeply. Booting one player off the roster this deep in the offseason to make room for another — no matter how big the talent discrepancy between the two are — makes for quite an uncomfortable conversation and scenario.

Missouri's 2025-26 roster

Jason Crowe Jr., G, Freshman
Aaron Rowe, G, Redshirt Freshman
Cord Stansberry, G, Senior
Jamier Jones, G, Sophomore
Kennard Davis, G, Senior
Jordan Crawford, G, Senior
Trent Pierce, F, Senior
Aidan Chronister, F, Freshman
Annor Boateng, F, Junior
Toni Bryant, F, Freshman
Luke Northweather, F, Senior
Nicholas Randall, F, Sophomore
Bryson Tiller, F, Redshirt Sophomore
Jaylen Carey, F, Senior
Trent Burns, C, Redshirt Sophomore

Of course, given the unprecedented nature of the eligibility ruling, the NCAA could make an exception and allow programs to roster an additional player — it's unsafe to rule out any possibilities, especially considering the plaintiffs in the lawsuit requested roster limits be suspended. If the request is approved, it would allow Missouri to add Mitchell to the mix without disposing of a player currently on the roster.

"Further, evidence that the NCAA offers regarding roster caps is itself lacking empirical support: 'Plaintiffs’ slots in many sports would be easily filled because of the limited annual number of NCAA Division I roster slots available and the multitude of newly-graduated high school student-athletes hoping for an opportunity,'" the order states.

"And Dr. Backus’s contention — an echo of one made by the NCAA throughout its brief — that a 'finding for the Plaintiffs would deprive others of those [athletic] opportunities,' proceeds from the premise that each roster is at maximum capacity. The NCAA has put forth no evidence of this, and Plaintiffs have put forth evidence to the contrary. Moreover, as Plaintiffs observe, the number of athletes in college sports would increase if, given that it appears many teams have not met their roster caps, Plaintiffs and class members were allowed to compete for a fifth season."

The next obstacle to be climbed is the possibility of Mitchell exploring other options. In the Southeastern Conference alone, there's a few viable threats to poach Mitchell away. There's LSU, who currently rosters just four players and has spent the entire offseason recruiting players in unprecedented circumstances, along with Vanderbilt, Arkansas and Kentucky in-conference with open roster spots. There's plenty other Power Five programs around the nation with open roster spots as well.

Missouri would likely need sufficient funds to compete to land Mitchell, which could be difficult given the talent brought in in the freshman and transfer classes — they've already splashed big. In all honesty, though, when a talent like Mitchell wants to suit up for your basketball team, and it's legally attainable, you do everything possible to make it happen. It's probably worth coughing up the money to add Mitchell to the loaded roster including proven veterans and incoming five-star freshmen.

The last major obstacle, which is a bit ironic that it falls so low on the food chain of priorities, is Mitchell's basketball fit with the new-look squad. Mitchell is undeniably a great player at the Power Five level, and can probably be a positive player regardless of situation, but the Missouri roster set to take the court in 2026-27 is largely different than the one Mitchell ran with a season ago. The new roster is primarily built around incoming five-star freshman Jason Crowe Jr., surrounding the talented guard with athletes and defenders.

Bringing Mitchell into the mix would certainly push either Bryson Tiller or Toni Bryant to the bench, assuming that was Missouri's idea of a starting big duo in the first place. Even if that wasn't the original frontcourt rotation, it would still significantly cut minutes for either Tiller or Bryant, and do the same for those further down in the rotation like Trent Burns, Jaylen Carey and Nicholas Randall, all of whom were likely originally under the impression that Mitchell would not return.

Mitchell was also the clear No. 1 option the past season, which Crowe is absolutely set up to be in the upcoming season — that would need to be ironed out between the duo. Both are rather ball-dominant players who thrive as high-usage engines that initiate offense. Neither are particularly strong away from the ball, nor are elite on the defensive end. Granted Mitchell would also be joining on rather late notice for as big a piece as he is, Missouri would need to gel quickly, as its nonconference slate is far from a sleepwalk this season.

As previously stated, though, Mitchell's fit with the team on the basketball court is last in the pecking order for a multitude of reasons. The first being that Mitchell is too good of a player to not warrant adding to the mix regardless of fit, and the second being that none of it matters if Missouri can't make it work legally or Mitchell opts to find a new home in the transfer portal.

At the end of the day, Missouri's best player from the 2025-26 season is now available to return to one of the most-hyped rosters in program history. All the stars are aligining, and both sides should be eager to make it happen.

Sign up for our free newsletter and follow us on Twitter/X, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram for the latest news.

Add us as a preferred source on Google