Federal Judge Makes Crucial Change To NCAA Transfer Rule

College athletes who were prohibited from playing immediately after transferring for a second time will now be allowed to do so after a federal judge issued a 14-day temporary restraining order against the NCAA for enforcing the rule on Wednesday (December 13), the Associated Press reports.

U.S. District Judge John Preston Bailey in West Virginia issued the order following a lawsuit filed by the state and six others -- Colorado, Illinois, New York, North Carolina, Ohio and Tennessee -- claiming the NCAA rule for its waiver process violated federal antitrust laws and scheduled a hearing on the restraining order is set to take place on December 27. The NCAA didn't immediately confirm whether or not it planned to appeal the temporary restraining order.

NCAA underclassmen student-athletes are allowed to transfer schools only once without having to sit out a full year and are required to be granted a waiver by the NCAA in order to play immediately after transferring more than once. College sports' governing body had previously implemented stricter guidelines for granting waivers on a case-by-case basis last January.

The lawsuit was filed amid West Virginia basketball player RaeQuan Battle being forced to sit out after transferring from Montana State prior to the 2023-24 season. It wasn't immediately made clear if Battle or other players facing similar situations would be able to compete during the 14-day restraining order.