Transfer, eligibility.

lhold15
I am not an expert on transfer eligibility. I would think you can find a lot of the info on the NCAA website. Which level he is playing at (D1, D2, NAIA, Juco) factor into this.

As a general rule in D1 you have 5 years to play 4 years of athletics from the time your first class starts your freshman year of college. In D2 you have 10 semesters to complete 8 semesters of eligibility. In D2 you can start and stop the clock by leaving school. In D1 the clock keeps ticking.

In addition to the eligibility timelines there are specific rules for transferring and depending on how the transfer is conducted you may loose some eligibility by transferring.

lhold15,

It may best that you read the NCAA transfer guide (an easy read...URL provided below), and call the NCAA with questions.

There are a lot of "it depends" situations such as if he was recruited and his academic status. What Joe87 has provided in general is true, but I'd want to know specifics if I was in your shoes. The devil is always in the details.

NCAA Transfer Guide

Question.

Son is a Junior at at D2 school, his first two years were spent at a Junior College. He breaks his leg lifting and will now miss the entire season. The D2 school is going to redshirt him. My question is this. Because he hasn't played yet at the D2, can he transfer after his medical redshirt to another D2 or even a small D1 without sitting out a year if he wants to and still have 2 years left? Hypothetically of course.

He can use the one-time transfer exception at a new D2 school, provided his current school will provide a release. He would still have two seasons of eligibility remaining, with 4 full time semesters (after this year) in which to use the two remaining seasons.

In most situations, he would have to sit out a year if he transfers to any D1. D1 uses a 5 year clock, so after sitting out a year, he could only compete in one year However, if he has never received athletic aid from any 4 year school, and wasn't recruited to his current 4 year school, he may qualify for the one-time transfer exception. In that case, he would still have two years in which to use his two remaining seasons.