The Big 12 has officially ruled that professional athletes cannot return to the conference. Does this affect any of the recent signings for Texas Tech?
LUBBOCK - In a move that echoes the decisions from the Big Ten and SEC, the Big 12 officially passed new guidelines that prevent any of its member institutions from adding athletes to their rosters who have experience at the professional level.
The move garnered unanimous agreement from all 16 athletic directors within the conference and is set to go into effect immediately.
Most of the reasoning behind these new rules from the aforementioned leagues stems from outcry around LSU and head coach Lane Kiffin luring two former Ole Miss Rebels from the NFL to Baton Rouge.
While they never appeared in a regular season game in the pro ranks and most of their decision came from trying to take advantage of the new "five-for-five" eligibility ruling from the NCAA, the move still set a precedent that many felt could be dangerous.
These responses from the conferences eliminate any sort of further issues arising from the slippery-slope situation.
The Big 12 used similar language to their Big Ten and SEC counterparts, but went a step further and locked out any former athlete that has experience in any professional league after being enrolled at a collegiate program.
The three main points that eliminate an athlete from returning to the league included declaring for the corresponding draft for that sport and not withdrawing before the draft, being listed on a professional roster and/or signing a contract with any professional sports league.
These criteria still leave room to navigate for athletes trying to return to collegiate action using the newfound fifth-year eligibility development and seemingly protects all international athletes.
One of the most notable programs in the Big 12 with ties back to this class of 2022 eligibility discourse is Texas Tech, as the Red Raiders previously signed three men's hoops stars and most recently a quarterback that benefitted from the development.
That raises the question about how this latest move from the conference will impact the Red Raiders?
The answer appears to be very minimal.
Looking at the cases of the two signees for Texas Tech that have ties to the pros against the recently passed guidelines from the Big 12, they seem to fall in favor of the prospective Red Raiders.
Donovan Atwell did appear in the NBA Summer League with the Chicago Bulls, but he did not sign a contract with the team nor did he appear on the franchise's official roster.
Going along with that, Thomas "Tommy" Castellanos tried out for two NFL franchises after thinking his college career was over, however, he was never signed by either of them.
The biggest point of contention is the draft status, as both did enter their names into the NBA and NFL Draft, respectively, and did not withdraw before the draft ended.
But some early points have indicated that this only applies for those that forgo their remaining eligibility to enter the draft, not those that entered because they truly were out of eligibility at the point of entry.
It remains to be seen exactly how the Red Raiders will be affected by the new guidelines, if at all, but Texas Tech should seemingly feel good about its spot with their signees.
