NCAA Looks Into Granting Extra Year for Student-Athletes

The NCAA is getting this one right.

The NCAA is getting this one right, and it didn't take them long to move forward as just one day after canceling all spring sports and other sanctioned events, the governing body of intercollegiate athletics is moving to allow student-athletes an extra year of eligibility to replace the one just taken from them.

While the information came in the form of a tweet from Jeff Goodman, there has now been an official release from Indianapolis, and the fact they are talking of this is an encouraging sign for seniors whose eligibility ended with the cancellations on Thursday.    

The NCAA’s Council Coordination Committee has agreed to grant relief for the use of a season of competition for student-athletes who have participated in spring sports.

Committee will also discuss issues for winter sport student-athletes.

— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) March 13, 2020

There will also be some consideration for winter sports, such as basketball, though this will not impact Vanderbilt at this point as they had completed their season with the end of the regular season and a first-round loss in the only round of the SEC Tournament. 

However, as was written here in another article on Friday, there should be some consideration for basketball seniors as well. 

For instance, consider a team making the tournament this season for the first time in school history, or in several years where those senior players might never have been to the "Big Dance" in their collegiate careers, but would have this time around. 

Division I Council Coordination Committee agrees eligibility relief is appropriate for spring sports: pic.twitter.com/u7hwYOyTDV

— NCAA News (@NCAA_PR) March 13, 2020

Those seniors, who are not destined for the next level of sports should be allowed one more chance to get their "One Shining Moment" on the big stage at the NCAA Tournament. That seems like the only fair way to replace what was taken from then, through no fault of their own or the NCAA. 

Time will tell what is done about all of this, but the fact that the NCAA is moving quickly to make concessions and move to allow the spring sport athletes another year is a positive move by a body that doesn't always get it right when it comes to some of the decisions made on college athletes and athletics in general.