New Transfer Rule in College Football

NEW transfer rule ignites debate:

Fifth-year seniors who have already earned their degree

can transfer without sitting out a year.

A controversial transfer rule recently passed by the NCAA appears here to stay, despite criticism from some quarters new policy, passed in late April by the NCAA Board of Directors, allows football and basketball players with one year of eligibility remaining to move to another Division I program and play immediately, assuming that player has earned a bachelor's degree and a graduate course of study is not available at his previous school.

"I don't think there's any way it will be sent back," said Grant Teaff, executive director of the American Football Coaches Association. "And I don't think it's going to be mass chaos. I don't think that at all."But the worry is, simply, the recruiting that can go on. You'd have proven talent that can come to school and be eligible immediately."That's already happened. Arizona quarterback Richard Kovalcheck, a part-time starter who graduated in three years, transferred to Vanderbilt.But Kovalcheck would have fit under the Southeastern Conference's old transfer rule, which required a player to have two years of eligibility. Now, he will be able to play both years rather than sit out a season, as was required under the old NCAA guidelines.

Vanderbilt has been the first team to take advantage of this new rule, and it greatly benefits them. Vandy was looking needy at the quarterback posistion with Cutler off in Denver, so this is obviously a huge land for them. Kovalcheck is a smart and experienced qb that has already played four years at Arizona. Can Vanderbilt make another run for a bowl bid? Ofcourse every team looks good in the offseason, but the future looks bright for this new team. I really think that this ball club will stay average and will not go back to the years where they were horrible.

B E L I E V E!