After a unanimous vote from FBS coaches Tuesday, players are one step closer to being able to play up to nine games in a season and still qualify to redshirt.
Nearly half of the 136 FBS coaches attended the annual convention of the American Football Coaches Association, where the decision was made following ongoing concerns about eligibility. This would amend the previous rule, allowing players to see action in four games, as well as any playoff or postseason games.
But this doesn’t mean it’s official yet. This vote comes as a recommendation by these coaches and still has to be solidified by the NCAA Division I Committee.
Typically, in a regular season, teams play 12 games, and if this new rule comes into action, players could have nearly a full year of action while still retaining eligibility for another season.
And in this growing age of NIL, the transfer portal and players requesting extra years of eligibility, the demand for reconsideration of eligibility requirements by players and coaches has been growing.
At the forefront is Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss.
Chambliss — who had a breakout season with the Rebels, becoming the main quarterback and being named the SEC’s 2025 Football Newcomer of the Year — applied for a sixth season of eligibility due to respiratory issues in his sophomore year at Division II Ferris State. He was denied Friday despite giving 91 pages of medical documentation to the NCAA.
Now, lawyers for Chambliss are said to seek an injunction so the quarterback will be eligible to play in the 2026 season, noting that the lawsuit should be filed near the end of the week.
Along with Chambliss, 437 other football players have sought clock extensions, with the NCAA only approving nine.
If the NCAA Committee approves the proposed modification to redshirt eligibility, it would mark the first change to the rule in more than seven years.
Reach Sophie Webb at sports@collegian.com or on social media @sophgwebb.
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