The NCAA Division I Council denied a request Friday to temporarily waive the minimum number of sports required to be a Division I member and delayed a decision on allowing all college athletes to be immediately eligible one time after transferring.
The NCAA announced that a request made recently by five FBS conference commissioners to waive numerous Division I requirements
for up to four years would be considered in the coming weeks. But a blanket waiver permitting schools to drop below the minimum 16
sports would only be considered on a case-by-case basis.
The request was made with schools bracing for tough times as the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic begins to take a toll
athletic departments.
The NCAA is giving teams new scheduling options for the 2020-21 season. The NCAA’s Division I Council approved a proposal to give men’s basketball programs choices with 28- and 29-game schedules. The council vote still must be reviewed by the NCAA Board of
Directors and won’t be considered final until the conclusion of its board meeting on Wednesday.
The proposal will allow schools that schedule 28 regular-season games to participate in one multiple-team event of up to three
games. Programs with 29-game regular-season schedules can participate in a multiple-team event with up to two games.
A team that does not participate in a multiple-team event can have up to 29 regular-season games. Three-day multiple-team events must
by completed within 10 days and two-day events must conclude within five days, under the proposal. Non-Division I programs may participate only if they are the event host.