The NCAA Must Make Things Right With Arion Carter and the Rest of the Nation

The NCAA has a challenge on their hands, and failure to complete this challenge could result in some major questions moving forward.

Nov 22, 2025; Gainesville, Florida, USA; Tennessee Volunteers linebacker Arion Carter (7) works out prior to the game against the Florida Gators at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

College football is changing, and fans are calling for change when it comes to the suspension of Arion Carter.

For those who don't know, Carter is set to miss the first two games of the season, and it is largely due to the fact that he booked a flight to an NFL facility through an agent. When he opted to return, he made things right just to cover himself, but that ultimately didn't change anything, and the NCAA would suspend him.

While this did seem a bit unfair already, it was even worse when players ho were already in the NFL were able to return to college, which is something that Vols On SI reporter Josh Greer touched on recently. If interested in reading that first, please click HERE.

At this point, the NCAA has no choice but to make things right, and fans have been calling for this to be the case.

"Explain how Tennessee linebacker Arion Carter has to sit two games for a $400 plane flight he repaid under NCAA rules, but players can get cut from NFL teams and go play immediately in college for new teams," Clay Travis said on X.

Travis, despite being popular, can recognize that college football isn't being run the way that it should. In fact, this whole situation nearly poses as favoritism, considering an athlete is punished for taking a flight while there are professional athletes who can play college football.

This Isn't a One-Time Thing, It's a Habit

May 15, 2026; Gainesville, FL, USA; The NCAA logo is painted on the field before the game between the Florida Gators and Florida A&M Rattlers at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

This raises a bigger concern for many, including me as a general college football fan. That, of course, is "When is enough... enough?"

This is only the first case of this happening, and as in many situations in the past with the NCAA, there will be cases that follow quickly. It is just like the situation with Diego Pavia, and how he was able to gain an extra year, which would later leave many with the opportunity to follow behind. This includes Tennessee quarterback Joey Aguilar, who spent his final season of college with the Vols due to the year. However, Tennessee hasn't always been on the winning side. Let's not forget that a player like Zakai Zeigler was denied college eligibility following his own appeal, despite Alabama and other teams playing professional players last season.

All of this stuff has simply been out of order and leaves the NCAA with one solution. That solution is to set baselines. Without any baselines, this situation will get out of control, and there will be no coming back from this, in my opinion.