What's new
USCHO Fan Forum

This is a sample guest message. Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

  • The USCHO Fan Forum has migrated to a new plaform, xenForo. Most of the function of the forum should work in familiar ways. Please note that you can switch between light and dark modes by clicking on the gear icon in the upper right of the main menu bar. We are hoping that this new platform will prove to be faster and more reliable. Please feel free to explore its features.

Eligibility Question

LongGame

Member
Scenario: A player graduated high school in 2023 and then enrolled in college in the fall of 2023 and played three D3 seasons at an NCAA D3 school, and then decides to not play their senior year and graduates on time in 2027. The player then plans to enroll in grad school, maybe in the fall of 2027, maybe later.

Question #1: How much NCAA eligibility does the player have?

Question #2: How much time does the player have to use whatever NCAA eligibility they have left?

Question #3: How much ACHA eligibility does the player have left?

Question #4: How much time does the player have to use whatever ACHA eligibility they have left?

Thanks in advance for any answers.
 
NCAA = 10 semesters to play four seasons. The clock starts when you enroll full time. The only way to stop it is to not attend school. In your example, the player would have used three seasons, but 8 semesters. Therefore, they would have two semesters left to play one final season. If they took time off from school, theoretically, they would have "infinite" time left to use the eligibility IF they weren't enrolled in school.

ACHA does not affect NCAA eligibility but the 10 semester clock would be running while they were in school.

The only way to get a year back in D3 is a hardship waiver.
 
NCAA = 10 semesters to play four seasons. The clock starts when you enroll full time. The only way to stop it is to not attend school. In your example, the player would have used three seasons, but 8 semesters. Therefore, they would have two semesters left to play one final season. If they took time off from school, theoretically, they would have "infinite" time left to use the eligibility IF they weren't enrolled in school.

ACHA does not affect NCAA eligibility but the 10 semester clock would be running while they were in school.

The only way to get a year back in D3 is a hardship waiver.
They do not have infinite time left. Once the clock starts, they have five years, enrolled or otherwise.

I don't know the ACHA rules, but many of their leagues don't have rules, so it could depend on where they are playing. I know my brother, who played soccer, had to sit out a year (which was the rule back in the old days when you went from a D1 school to a D3 school) when transferring schools, so he only played three years in four. Thus, one year left of eligibility. He went to grad school also planning to play whereever he went for one year. It was a two-year grad program. However, he picked a school that did not have a varsity soccer team, only club. Granted, we're not talking ACHA, but because it was club, he got to play both years. Club rules can be wildly different.

Huge caveat to all this -- the eligibility rules have gone completely out the window with all the recent court cases. Just look at the football player going to Montana for his NINTH year of playing. So, all this has to be taken with a grain of salt.
 
They do not have infinite time left. Once the clock starts, they have five years, enrolled or otherwise.

I don't know the ACHA rules, but many of their leagues don't have rules, so it could depend on where they are playing. I know my brother, who played soccer, had to sit out a year (which was the rule back in the old days when you went from a D1 school to a D3 school) when transferring schools, so he only played three years in four. Thus, one year left of eligibility. He went to grad school also planning to play whereever he went for one year. It was a two-year grad program. However, he picked a school that did not have a varsity soccer team, only club. Granted, we're not talking ACHA, but because it was club, he got to play both years. Club rules can be wildly different.

Huge caveat to all this -- the eligibility rules have gone completely out the window with all the recent court cases. Just look at the football player going to Montana for his NINTH year of playing. So, all this has to be taken with a grain of salt.
I’m sorry, but at least in D3 that’s not true. If you’re not enrolled in school the clock stops ticking.
 
This scenario is how Lycoming College had a 58 year old on their football team this past fall. Also, I believe, these circumstances allowed a father/son to play hockey together at UMass Boston a few years back.
I saw the documentary on that guy. In his case I don't think the clock ever started he was a hs drop out if I remember correctly. U can start at whatever age u want. You could be 78 and play with ur grandkids if u wanted as long as u hadn't played at the NCAA level in the past.
 
This scenario is how Lycoming College had a 58 year old on their football team this past fall. Also, I believe, these circumstances allowed a father/son to play hockey together at UMass Boston a few years back.
The UMass Boston situation was not the same. The father never attended college. So, his clock had never started.
 
Back
Top