NCAA Graduate Transfer Rule

This has been a hot button topic since Wilson transferred from North Carolina State to Wisconsin, but for those that don’t understand what happened, here’s the low down.

Russell Wilson earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Communications at N.C. State with a year left of eligibility to play football, so he decided to transfer to Wisconsin and attend grad school. Most students who wish to transfer and play for another team must sit out a year of eligibility, but there is an exception to the rule: if the player completes his or her degree they are allow to attend another school without penalty if the school offers a program their current school does not have. Wilson did exactly that.

Now, Wisconsin’s coach, Bret Bielema took advantage of this rule with Wilson, but he publicly said the rule is terrible and will cause a “free-agent” system in college athletics. Other schools have also taken advantage of this rule as of late.

Some people find the graduate transfer rule to be terrible while others claim it to be one of the few bright spots of the NCAA. I agree with the latter. This fear of creating a free-agent market in college sports is absurd. College football and basketball graduates 69% and 68%, respectfully.  Let’s be honest, most of the ones that graduate are not the elite athletes we see winning the Heisman and going pro. These are not the players other teams are looking to add to their roster. Most student athletes are in school to play a sport they love and get an education. The other 30% of players that don’t graduate fail to do so because they leave early for the pros or can’t handle the collegiate level of school, fame, and sports. As such there are only a handful of students with eligibility who graduate that are good enough to make a difference on a team. Russell Wilson just happens to be one of those outstanding student athletes.

Wilson did nothing wrong. Actually, he did what is expected of a true student athlete. He played for his school and became a scholar. So why shouldn’t he take advantage of his eligibility if he wants to? He wants to continue his education and continue to play football. I see nothing wrong with this. In fact, I see everything right with this.

People are afraid that more and more student athletes will take advantage of this expectation, and I say more power to them. If students are completing their degrees, let them have that ability. Universities should encourage these players to graduate. Every university’s main product is their graduates, and the greater the number and better the quality of students that graduate, the better the product you have.

Another aspect people are worried about is the recruitment of these players. The potential of back-door dealing, illegal recruiting activities and such are going to occur under the current rule. I won’t deny that, but there is what I think is a simple fix. Don’t allow other schools to recruit with the athlete, period. The student should be the party to initiate talks with the school, since he or she is looking for a graduate program that “interests” them. This communication will have to be done through NCAA guidelines, and certain procedures are expected with some degree of professionalism. Remember, they are going not just to play a sport but to continue their education, so they will need to find a program that 1) their current school doesn’t have and 2) that will accept the student into their program.  So I would expect that these players go through the same process as I did to get into grad school. If they apply and get declined because they don’t qualify, then they can’t transfer their eligibility. End of story. Now I doubt this will happen too often because of the influence of athletic departments, but nevertheless, these guidelines should be used to prevent what critics are calling “free-agency” in college athletics.