As eligibility lawsuits pile up, some teams face uncertainty over which players will be allowed to compete.
Frustration was already mounting for Luke Loucks over fifth-year player Alex Steen’s eligibility, but as more teams add players, that frustration will continue to grow.
Florida State men’s basketball coach Luke Loucks spoke with the media and used five minutes to voice his frustration with the 5-for-5 rule, which has created a new source of chaos as teams wait to see which players are deemed eligible. Teams whose players are denied are left at a competitive disadvantage.
Steen sued the NCAA for an additional year of eligibility after the NCAA changed to the 5-for-5 rule, five years to play five seasons. It replaced the previous system, which allowed athletes five years to compete in four seasons. On September 11, Leon County Circuit Court Judge David M. Frank denied Steen’s request for a temporary and preliminary injunction that would have allowed him to compete for a fifth season.
Loucks’ frustration stems from the inconsistency across college basketball and football, as he watches people with similar stories contribute or be allowed to play while Steen is left looking on from the sidelines.
“I'm watching Tommy Castellanos in his fifth year playing for Texas Tech. I'm watching Ole Miss's quarterback, I think in his sixth year. And his story is a lot like Steen's,” Loucks said.
The inconsistency stems from the NCAA winning its federal case, which paused a nationwide class-action lawsuit. Instead of pursuing the cases through the nationwide class action, lawyers have filed lawsuits on behalf of individual players or small groups in state and county courts, a strategy that has proven successful.
Unfortunately, for teams whose players fail to get the temporary and preliminary injunction, it has created a significant competitive imbalance for the teams whose players are denied, according to Loucks.
“You're putting schools that you deny these certain cases, that get approved elsewhere, you're putting them at a complete competitive disadvantage,” Loucks said. “We're gonna go against teams that have multiple fifth-year guys that have been approved in court.”
Michigan is one of those teams, after adding two fifth-year players on September 23 and 24. The reigning national champions got back guard Roddy Gayle Jr. after winning his case in the State of New York while transfer Kenny Noland won a lawsuit in the State of Indiana.
Kansas forward Tre White also received a preliminary injunction, allowing him to return to the Jayhawks. Those three join a long list of players who have received additional eligibility, including Tamin Lipsey, who returned to Iowa State; Javon Bennett, who transferred from Dayton to Gonzaga; and Miami Hurricanes leading scorer Malik Reneau, who was granted a temporary restraining order (TRO) allowing him to play.
The issue extends beyond Steen and Florida State. With dozens of lawsuits across different states and jurisdictions still awaiting rulings, the current process makes it difficult for coaches to plan their rosters. Teams must leave roster spots open while they wait for rulings that could determine whether they can fill them, leaving coaches in limbo as they finalize their lineups.
“It's either all of them are ineligible or they're all eligible. Like even the playing field, this isn't that hard,” Loucks said.
Now, as more eligibility cases move through the courts, frustration will continue to grow with each denial or approval, and the issue is likely to remain a topic throughout the season. Until the NCAA, government or the courts establish a uniform set of rules, teams will continue to enter each season in a state of uncertainty, forced to adjust their rosters as new rulings reshape the college landscape.
