The NCAA would rather not allow Jaxon Kohler, Carson Cooper, and others in similar situations as them to play college basketball this season.
Two of Michigan State’s starters from this season’s team have likely been holding out a bit for the NCAA’s potentially incoming “5-for-5 rule,” which would essentially allow college athletes to play five collegiate seasons, rather than the previous four, while also basically eliminating redshirts.
The NCAA’s Statement
On Monday, the NCAA released a statement saying the Division I Board of Directors directed the Division I Cabinet to advance the massive rule change, which is a big step towards formal adoption. The question now was whether seniors this year would be grandfathered in.
Unfortunately for Kohler and Cooper, they wouldn’t be allowed to play under this proposed new system, with the statement saying it wants to “Maintain existing rules — allowing four seasons of competition in five years of eligibility — for student-athletes competing in the 2025-26 academic year; new rules are not expected to retroactively apply to student-athletes whose eligibility is or will be completed by the spring of 2026.”
Not Over Just Yet
This is not technically the end yet, but it’s definitely a setback if Kohler and Cooper want to play college hoops next season, when they would presumably also make the most money. Excluding 2025-26 seniors will almost certainly lead to a lawsuit from someone, whether it’s Kohler, Cooper, or anyone else…