How The Class of 2022 Injunction Impacts Virginia Tech Football, Hoops, Softball

Cue chaos. Yesterday, Judge Charlotte Sweeney ordered the NCAA to declare Class of 2022 athletes that exhausted four seasons this spring eligible. The ramifications of this injunction — depending on how long it stands — appear to be even more consequential for the future of college athletics. Here's a look at how it impacts Virginia Tech sports for football, basketball and softball:

Football

The Class of 2022 injunction doesn't mean that redshirt seniors can run it back. Those players started in 2021, so the only impact is to true seniors (redshirt juniors are already eligible, anyways) from the 2025 season.

That applies to three players: Arias Nash, Sherrod Covil Sr. and Kody Huisman. Nash has already transferred to Tulsa, while Covil Sr. is on this year's roster as a fifth-year player. Huisman already signed to a UDFA contract with the NFL's Buffalo Bills, so that essentially secures that he isn't back with Virginia Tech.

Basketball

There's little impact on both teams beyond its true seniors being eligible. On the men's basketball side, I'd assume there is no impact. Jailen Bedford played two years at junior college, but under the new five-in-five rules, he's passed the age barometer. Tobi Lawal was drafted in the second round of the 2026 NBA Draft and he played in the Summer League for the Dallas Mavericks, so I'd assume that due to him now being a professional, any and all ability to return is now null and void.

For women's basketball, there were two seniors on last year's roster. Mel Daley went overseas to play in Finland, while Kilah Freelon is now playing in Ireland. The two are likely ineligible to return, since they've moved to professional teams and signed already. The injunction likely bars any athletes who have already signed with professional teams, so it seems as if there's no impact on either basketball team.

Softball

The NCAA's new "five-in-five" rules paved the way for players to enjoy an extra year, though that comes with the caveat that rosters will have to navigate the 25-woman roster limit. The constraints become even more defined for this season, given that rosters will only be operating with several months to line up plans. The injunction comes just several weeks before the start of the academic year, and several Virginia Tech players have already moved on to the pro ranks.

Take catcher/designated player Kylie Aldridge, for example. Aldridge now plays in the Professional Softball League (PSL) for the Kansas City Diamonds, the same ball club that Class of 2025 outfielder Cori McMillan is playing for.

As for te other players who could return that haven't gone to the pro ranks, Cassie Grizzard and Sophie Kleiman are the two that would be eligible for such a return.

After 26.2 innings of work in 2025, Grizzard only saw the diamond for one frame in 2026, striking out a batter and yielding a walk. Kleiman's role also decreased in her final year with Virginia Tech. Following a 71.1-inning workload in 2025, Kleiman posted a 4.50 ERA in 32 frames this past season, striking out 23 batters.

Rachel Castine gained a fifth year for 2026 due to a season-ending injury in 2024 that necessitated a medical redshirt, so under the current five-in-five rules, she has exhausted her eligibility regardless.

How the injunction treats athletes that have already entered the professional ranks under the guise that they had no collegiate eligibility remaining (pre-injunction) will be a point of emphasis. Such a point would apply only to Aldridge, who graduated from Virginia Tech in May with a bachelor's degree.

My Thoughts

This entire situation seems chaotic. Several players signed professional contracts under the premise that their eligibility had been exhausted and now — just under three weeks before students head back to campus, at least for Virginia Tech — the playing field has shifted. It's not to fault the athletes themselves for pursuing another opportunity to play at the collegiate level; rather, it's the timing right before an academic year takes place.

The athletes themselves are declared as eligible just over a month before several seasons (football, soccer, volleyball) start when there's scant scholarships available — unless they remove existing players from the roster.

The Wisne v NCAA prelim injunction that gave 4 yr class of 2026 athletes another year could be more impactful than many realize.

Plaintiffs requested an order not only enjoining the NCAA’s eligibility rule, but also roster limits & the salary cap.

Court broadly granted relief. pic.twitter.com/toBUooDNxu
— Mit Winter (@WinterSportsLaw) August 1, 2026

The plaintiffs, however, requested their order that enjoins the NCAA's eligibility rule but also its roster limits and the salary cap. For right now, the roster limits are not enforced upon Class of 2022 (high school) players.

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