The NCAA is expected to hear a proposal on Thursday that will give certain programs and future recruits -- both high school players and junior college transfers -- an extra year to adjust to more stringent academic requirements.
The changes that would be made for the 2012-2013 and 2013-2014 seasons would allow the programs considered low-resource -- in the both 15th percentile of an overall average of institutional spending per student, athletic expenses per student-athlete and the average Pell Grant per student -- to either have a four-year rolling average of 900 on their APR scores of a two-year average of 930. For 2014-2015, the schools falling below the four-year rolling average of 930 would need a two-year average of 940, and by 2015-2016, the two-year average will be non-existent.
“When you look at a BCS program and the level of resources they have and the staffing they have, it’s a very, very different model,” NCAA President Mark Emmert told the AP on Wednesday.
This is a good move by the NCAA. Programs should be allowed the opportunity to adjust to changes that are being implemented.
It won’t help out the most high-profile APR victim, however.
UConn, the 2011 national champion who would be ineligible for the 2013 NCAA tournament under the current system, is far from a low-resource program. For UConn to be granted eligibility for the 2013 tournament, they would need to NCAA Committee on Academic Performance to decide to base their eligibility on the 2010-2011 and 2011-2012 APR scores, something that most believe to be an unlikely occurrence.
Rob Dauster is the editor of the college basketball website Ballin’ is a Habit. You can find him on twitter @robdauster.