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The era of the 27-year-old college basketball star could be over as the NCAA considers a change to redshirting rules following an executive order from Donald Trump on college sports.
Currently, redshirting allows players to navigate through the 5-year NCAA eligibility rules. However, the governing body is now contemplating a new age-based ruling following President Trump’s mandate. The 5-year window would begin when he is 19 or graduates from high school, whichever is earlier.
This would mean we would see no players older than 24 in college basketball. Redshirting and medical waivers currently enable players to extend their college basketball careers by as much as 6 to 8 years, and several Division I teams are benefiting from it.
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The redshirting concept allows players to abandon one season entirely to preserve their NCAA eligibility years. The college basketball rules are more intense, with players who opt to redshirt not eligible to play a single minute the entire season. But medical waivers can navigate that particular situation.
The most prominent example was USC’s Chad Baker-Mazara, who was released from the program before the NCAA Tournament. USC was his fifth college basketball team, and he had turned down several opportunities to enter the NBA Draft to continue playing in college. Mazara was 26 when he was released, which highlights a prolonged issue with the system.
Oakland’s Brett White II spent years working in construction in between his college basketball years and played in the Horizon conference while being 27 years old.
There are some cases where Trump’s executive order still allows them to extend their college basketball careers. The NCAA will consider years spent towards military or religious service in calculating the five-year window. This will provide relief to some players who would otherwise be ineligible, especially with the proposed age-based calculation.
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Ramel Bethea, the oldest Division I player, spent five years in the…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/potential-end-redshirts-ncaa-eyes-212645201.html
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Publish date : 2026-04-11 21:26:00
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