The NCAA has sued Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine in federal court, seeking to block his new executive order that gives Ohio colleges the option to let athletes who finished high school in 2022 compete for a fifth college season, OutKick reported.
What DeWine ordered
According to OutKick, DeWine signed the order three days before the NCAA filed suit. The order would allow Ohio’s public and private universities to play members of the Class of ’22 for a fifth season even though the NCAA’s new eligibility guidance excludes athletes who have already played four seasons. OutKick said the rule at issue was passed in June and is being fought in multiple courts.
What the NCAA told the court
OutKick reports the suit was filed in federal court in Ohio. NCAA President Charlie Baker called the filing an “extraordinary step” to prevent DeWine from making it “impossible for all schools to compete on a level playing field.”
In the lawsuit, the NCAA accused DeWine of trying to give Ohio athletes “a hall pass” from following NCAA rules and said it aims “to halt a misguided attempt to give Ohio colleges and universities an unfair, unprecedented and unwarranted competitive advantage in stadiums and arenas throughout the country,” according to OutKick’s account of the filing.
Ohio courts step in
OutKick reports the Ohio Supreme Court has said it will determine the legality of DeWine’s order. The court paused an appeals court ruling that had declared the ’22 athletes ineligible and asked both sides to file briefs in a case led by basketball player Filip Borovićanin. Baker told OutKick the NCAA does not believe the Supreme Court’s order immediately made those athletes eligible.
Who’s affected right now
Per OutKick, athletes with immediate stakes include Gonzaga transfer Javon Bennett, Cincinnati’s MJ Collins and Borovićanin, who played in an exhibition against Tennessee after DeWine’s order put him back on the eligible list.
OutKick notes Ohio’s eight Division I programs have not publicly weighed in on the order. The state’s D-I ranks include Ohio State (Big Ten), Cincinnati (Big 12) and six Mid-American Conference schools.
Reaction from inside college sports
“This whole thing has become comical,” University of Tennessee athletic director Danny White said on social media in response to the NCAA announcement, according to OutKick.
What’s next—and the bigger fight
DeWine’s office declined to comment on the lawsuit, OutKick reported. The outlet also noted that while it is unusual, the NCAA has sued a governor before and prevailed in the early 1990s against Nevada Gov. Bob Miller over a state law affecting NCAA enforcement.
OutKick reported the NCAA has urged Congress for years to pass federal legislation limiting lawsuits against its nationwide rules. The Senate has sent the Protect College Sports Act to the House, but its fate in an election year is uncertain, per the report.
