The Athletic Director

The redshirt is dead — and most programs aren’t ready for what that means. Every scholarship now starts a 5-year clock the moment a kid enrolls or turns 19. No extensions. No medical freezes. That changes recruiting, roster building, and player development in one stroke. Birthday math is now part of every offer conversation. A kid who turns 19 before he steps on campus has already burned time. Coaches who ignore that will regret it. The portal gets leaner but more expensive. Fewer players with extra eligibility means a smaller pool — and the ones in it will cost more. The programs that win this era won’t be the ones with the most NIL money. They’ll be the ones who evaluate 17-year-olds better than everyone else and stop hiding developmental needs behind a redshirt year. The margin for error just got really small. @jrichardgoodman @VinnysCorner1 @SergeantMartee @BeholdPaleH0rse #portal #NCAA @latsondheimer @KasselMedia #recruits #eligibility #hssports #coaches #coach

Hi Erick - on the West Coast kids can and do play baseball literally every day of the year. There’s always some type of club team or private team playing games outside the high school season. In that scenario, and without knowing anything about the amount of players who were missing the club baseball activities I found the baseball coaches outward aggression, and demeanor to be totally counterproductive. He even went onto criticize the football coaches record and playoff performance. There has to be a better way to work out an agreement with high school coaches - than to call them names and talk smack about their records ? After all club coaches don’t have to publish any record and sometimes win and promote “National” championship tournaments consisting of 6 Sisters of The Poor type teams. Who really knows where the truth lies in that scenario but we did get to see how one side is clearly acting.

I I think any sport year around is ridiculous but it’s interesting to me seeing high school football coaches that have a fall season, winter workouts, spring practices, and mandatory summer practices getting mad at a travel baseball coach.

Hi Deerick - I understand all of the rational for what you said however, the homeschool kids certainly didn’t wake up one day and say “ mom and dad I don’t wanna be around other kids and I want you to teach me”. My personal experience is that the homeschool kids are great and admittedly, I haven’t run across any college scholarship athletes . My experience is on the West Coast in California, so it could be vastly different on a state by state basis.

Unpopular opinions… before you homeschool your child you should have to pass several iq test. If you home school you should not need entitled to any of the benefits of your local public school.

@DougJoubert Doug - you are correct AND the law suits have already started .

This is what I was thinking originally when this came out: less and more expensive portal movement, no redshirts (freshmen will play more immediately), more emphasis on high school recruitment (less on portal). Now, let the lawsuits on behalf of the athletes begin!

@StevenMPolkXP Amen Steven

@ADirector33 It is about time a rule is put in place that is positive for the kids so affected by Covid extra years. Get your degree and get off the field. I just hope those looking for a 6th year in 2027 are all told no. Injuries happen, college is not a career.

The redshirt is dead — and most programs aren’t ready for what that means. Every scholarship now starts a 5-year clock the moment a kid enrolls or turns 19. No extensions. No medical freezes. That changes recruiting, roster building, and player development in one stroke. Birthday math is now part of every offer conversation. A kid who turns 19 before he steps on campus has already burned time. Coaches who ignore that will regret it. The portal gets leaner but more expensive. Fewer players with extra eligibility means a smaller pool — and the ones in it will cost more. The programs that win this era won’t be the ones with the most NIL money. They’ll be the ones who evaluate 17-year-olds better than everyone else and stop hiding developmental needs behind a redshirt year. The margin for error just got really small. @jrichardgoodman @VinnysCorner1 @SergeantMartee @BeholdPaleH0rse #portal #NCAA @latsondheimer @KasselMedia #recruits #eligibility #hssports #coaches #coach

@Bradlito1 Agreed . Let’s return to normal age collegiate athletes .

@ADirector33 I'll take "all of the above" if it means I don't have to watch a 26-year-old ersatz student QB in the national championships. And especially so if it means he was on my "team" a year ago and is now playing against us.

Coach I’m not trying to find anything. It’s simple math- a kid that graduates at 17 which is rare or 18 which is more common he or she can go to a prep school or post grad school and then start their Clock - when they enroll in college at 19. A 19 year-old is gonna start his or her clock the fall of the school year they turned 19. That same 18 year-old who spends a year at a JC or even 17-year-old who spends two years at a JC will have five years of eligibility when they enroll in college at 19. The 19-year-old as you said who goes to JC is using up his or her years . Let’s be real- any student at any age getting a chance to play college baseball or college athletics in any sport is blessed.

@ADirector33 I not sure what U are trying to find but it adds one year, there is no redshirt. The day you start your first college class you have 5 years to that point. The route thing happens now with 4 yrs to play, now they can go to JUCO then play 3 more years instead of 2.

@TheDannyParker Danny, I couldn’t agree more. Those parents, though I misled a youth football coach coaches in the seventh and eighth grade.

This is going to cause a widespread backfire for parents who held their children back a year (or two) in order to give them an athletic advantage, playing some or all of their senior seasons in high school at age 19.

Micheal so many people want to see it incorrectly . If you are 19 in your senior year in high school your clock is starting the next fall and there is nothing you can do to stop it. Why people think it’s normal for a 19 year-old to be competing in high school is baffling. This NCAA ruling will affect and dare I say hurt student athletes, and their parents who try to play games by initially starting kids LATE in school and then holding them back before ninth grade.

Omg this is pretty freaking easy It’s the first Fall semester after your HS graduation OR 19th birthday, whichever happens first Considering no state allows a high school athlete to compete if the turn 19 prior to September outside of perhaps Ohio who do not allow any athlete to compete if they turn 20 at any time during the school year, there won’t be many kids starting their window and then playing another year of HS or prep What this does is manages the JUCO problem as well as the medical waiver problem. What it fails to address is what happens to the hundreds of D3 grads every year that are probably good enough to play at D1 level but have exhausted their D3 eligibility but technically all have 1 year of D1 eligibility remaining. Same for D2.

What changed? 1/ The academic year AFTER you turn 19 is when your clock starts. 2/ There is still a Q on what you do if you have a summer bday - does your clock start immediately in the Fall or are you lumped into the FOLLOWING academic year bc your bday was so close to occurring in the upcoming academic year?

@TheSports_Shift The Expos

Which team do associate the Hawk with the most? Expos or Cubs

@Crobo1982 @AdairCoach Kids graduating at 18 which means their parents followed a normal clock when enrolling them initially in school - will be fine and have options.

@AdairCoach @ADirector33 True. guess it depends on when they turn 19 in the senior year. before sept 1 looks like clock starts. after sept 1 clock starts when they enroll. will def affect the early enrollment process as a kid could literally be ineligible in the CFP his 5th year if he enrolled early!

Coach Vint- in basketball this happens daily. Street agents , club circuit coaches and private trainers request and get fake offers from D-1 colleges. I asked a Big East HC why does this happens and he said it’s (his staff) simply doing favors for people they MIGHT need on their side one day. Many of these “offers” are so fake the HC has never seen or met the players posting that they have been offered by his school. It’s so common the coaching staffs laugh with each other when they see these fake posts. All because an adult needs the clout and appearance that they have influence and juice at the D-1 level.

Anyone making fake offers to kids and using their dreams to steal money is the ultimate piece of 💩.

Hi Jen - the student-athletes that graduate at 17 most certainly have some major flexibility that the 19-year-olds don’t have- the 17-year-old kid can take a gap year to train or play at a PG school. I hope this answer helps. You’re going to read about and get conflicting advice on something. Holding kids back and graduating high school at 19. It’s my opinion that people who hold their kids back and have them graduate at 19 are actually limiting their options- especially on the backend of their kids athletic career. The people who started their kids academic journey early and have their kids graduate at 17 will be able to pull some moves like finding prep schools, PG etc… The families who started their kids at the normal age and have their students graduate at 18 also can begin their college career if they’re happy with their initial recruitment or find an alternative route that the 19-year-olds won’t be able to use without starting their clock. Again, I hope I answered your question

@ADirector33 If a kid is 17 when they graduate HS, does the 5-year clock start upon initial full-time college enrollment, or upon high school graduation? I've read conflicting reports. Can they take a gap year (or 2) & train before enrolling, if they start the academic year after turning 19?

Forgive my long response - I was asked by two different colleges to join their athletic departments and raise money for their collectives. This happened just two years ago. With a very casual look into their department and how much they raise vs how much they need it was obvious what was gonna happen- it became obvious that they would never be able to raise the money they need and ultimately they’re going to have to become great at recruiting high school kids again- unless a unicorn like Mark Cuban came in and saved them. Look at the University of Louisville. They’ve lost money in the athletic department three years in a row. I’m talking big money. That model is not sustainable. They’re going to have to find a tooth fairy or they’re going to have to realize the only way they can compete are to find players others are passing on for portal players. Specifically for your son and of course, I know nothing about his ability- if he’s everything you say he is then somebody is going to get him because the vast majority of D-1 football programs are finding out their collectives are limited and they have to not only be right about who they’re spending big money on, but they have to be right about recruiting HS kids again . Tell me more about your son- what are his measurables, grades and who is recruiting him ?

I really hope you are right about this: “The programs that win this era won’t be the ones with the most NIL money. They’ll be the ones who evaluate 17-year-olds better than everyone else and stop hiding developmental needs behind a redshirt year. The margin for error just got really small.” My under the radar son will be only 17 this coming season as a Non-Holdback. He is still growing and maturing but runs a 4.45 40 yd dash as a QB working with some of the best coaches in the country and looks much different than in his game film from just last November…

Hi coach - Any 19 year old in HS will have his clock start the next fall . That is correct but turning 19 in HS effectively starts your clock . In your scenario with the second kid turning 19 in March there still is nothing he’s gonna be able to do to stop his clock the next fall. I never saw Beer play in HS - how good was back then ?

@ADirector33 The clock will start when they show up for school on campus. So, if they pull a Seth beer and start class in January it starts then but if you turn 19 in March and don’t start classes until August it will start in August.

@TheShuter Correct

@ADirector33 This is only D1 sports, correct?

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@VinnysCorner1 Curry, Barry or Bird

Give me Curry…

Hi Jodie - let me clear up what I was talking about specifically. I was talking about my personal experience with 35 years coaching on all types of high school campuses. Some inner city, some in the suburbs - Catholic schools. High-end private tuition schools etc… My personal experience is that 19 year-olds on high school campuses are not the norm. It has also been my personal experience that most 19 year-old on HS campuses are credit or grade deficient and behind. Of course there are some athletes where that does not apply, but I was talking about the norm at least on the West Coast. Others on here have disagreed, which is fine. If an athlete turns 19 at any time during his senior year, his clock will begin the next fall when he enrolls in a school. Keep in mind I’ve probably had 400 messages, DM and text . All discussing different angles with this new ruling. Sorry if I confused you.

@ADirector33 Help me understand… you mention in the beginning it’s after 19 or at enrollment. Then later you say - “if the player is 29 when they step on campus they are already behind??? How is that, if it’s at enrollment OR 19? 5 yrs with whichever comes first????

@DrToddMexico @rdafor3 Awesome to hear …. All states are unique. Out here in CA I think in all my years coaching versus basketball I had two players go onto PG schools. Ironically, both were high-end academic kids. One did quite well for himself and played D-1.

@ADirector33 @rdafor3 High high high level prep schools in New England with exceptional academics and athletics. Most if not all offer PG years. My son and my daughter went to Phillips Academy Andover (not as PGs) for all 4 years. This schools are powerhouses for academics and athletics.

Parents reclassing their kids at the youth/HS level has just come to a screeching halt!

@M_Gerber17 Power 4 will be full of the older and richer guys. The low majors and 1-AA will have to recruit accordingly to their collectives.

5-for-5 is official. I’ve seen takes that believe this will help HS kids, takes that say it will hurt… My take: Post Grad opportunities for those age appropriate will start to be a smart choice The Power 4 will be full of older players Pro teams are going to find it harder and harder to sign Round 5+ guys who have eligibility left (more/same money going back to school) We will find out if HS guys love to play, because the opportunities directly out of HS will be different. Get yourself a roster spot and perform!