By Max Miller — Reporter
The coronavirus pandemic has created a major eligibility issue for the NCAA.
Although spring sport seniors are not getting the much-wanted farewell, the NCAA has announced that they will be giving all spring sport athletes another year of eligibility.
My first thought when I saw this was that it is a great idea. What senior wouldn’t want what every other graduating student-athlete got before them?
Looking deeper into the logistics of this the NCAA has a lot to sort out in order for this to work.
Athletes are taking this time to reevaluate what is next. As a hockey player for SJSU club hockey, I have yet to be affected.
But in the back of my head, I just wonder if the team will actually get a season.
Ruben Ibarra, Spartan of the Year award winner, was having a breakout year when the baseball season was stopped.
Senior Troy Viola was also having a breakout year. Viola has a big decision for what he wants to do next season and depending on what the NCAA rules he might be able to play another year for the Spartans.
Roster size needs to be the first issue discussed. Baseball and Softball teams around the nation recruit high school standouts.
The NCAA will have to decide to either restructure roster size or come up with a totally different way of roster rearrangement.
If all seniors choose to use their extra eligibility what will happen to all of the freshmen who join?
The NCAA should expand rosters and consider allowing red-shirt freshman the ability to play in specific moments.
It will be hard for every team to adjust to the changes in personnel not only from the player standpoint but coaching as well.
Coaches are now going to have to completely rethink how they play a team.
San Jose State Softball head coach Peter Turner utilized freshman pitchers, Shannon Haddad and Ilona Sullivan while the season was still going.
Haddad was a workhorse for the squad this season and was clearly the team’s No. 1 pitcher. All signs point towards coach Turner continuing that trend next season.
If a situation arises where SJSU softball gets yet another stand-out freshman pitcher next season. Who’s to say that they wouldn’t be able to play because of a roster issue due to eligibility.
Another issue is what will happen to the students who graduated. Will they still get to play even though they are not technically enrolled in classes? This and rosters are the two main issues that the NCAA will have to figure out.
Don’t get me wrong, the NCAA is doing a great thing by providing relief to the seniors for an extra year. But in order for this to work, there is a lot that needs to go into organizing how the next spring sports season will work.
There will be a committee that is going to be put in place and the next few months will be interesting as to how college sports will change in the coming future.
Follow Max on Twitter @SJSUMaxMiller
