NCAA ruling on junior college athletes allows some Eastern Washington football players to return
Eastern Washington’s football team formally said goodbye to two dozen seniors in November, and earlier this month it said the same to more players who decided to enter the transfer portal.
But last week’s NCAA ruling, in regards to the case of a Vanderbilt quarterback, opened the door for a few of those seniors to come back to the Eagles next season, should they wish to do so.
It’s just the latest shifting of the sands of college football as athletes, coaches and compliance officers try to keep up.
“I think the idea behind the ruling is probably more impactful than the actual ruling,” EWU associate head coach Marc Anderson said on Thursday. “Further down the road … that becomes super intriguing.”
On Monday, the NCAA Division I Board of Directors announced it had granted athletes who competed at a “non-NCAA school for one or more years” another year of NCAA eligibility, so long as they would have otherwise used their final season of eligibility during the 2024-25 academic year.
The announcement stemmed from a lawsuit filed against the NCAA by Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia, who claimed that seasons played at junior colleges should not count toward NCAA eligibility.
The waiver means a handful of Eastern Washington players – notably All-America all-purpose player Michael Wortham, starting tight end Austin York and starting center Jack Seelye – have been given another year of eligibility, if they want to use it next season. As of Thursday, they were still weighing their options of returning to Eastern, entering the transfer portal or moving on with their lives.
The decision is hardly automatic, though, Anderson said.
“The tough part right now is some of these guys have made other life plans,” Anderson said. “(They may have) come to terms with (playing) their last game.”
Wortham said Thursday he hadn’t been following the Pavia case – which was first filed in early November – until recently, as he was focused on playing out the rest of his senior season and then preparing to raise his professional profile.
“I saw the case and I thought, ‘Good for him. He’s lucky,’ ” Wortham said Thursday. “I didn’t put too much energy into it.”
But the outlook has changed for Wortham, York and Seelye – as well as for players in similar situations across the Big Sky Conference and all of college athletics.
What the ruling might mean going forward is not known, but if the NCAA were to change its eligibility rules further and decide that junior college seasons don’t count toward NCAA eligibility, that could be impactful, Anderson said.
Eastern has a handful of returning players who started their careers at junior colleges, notably quarterback Jared Taylor and running back Malik Dotson.
The Pavia ruling comes in the wake of the wide-reaching settlement in the House v. NCAA case that, among its various facets, includes roster caps that will go into effect next season. Football rosters will be limited to 105, close to where Eastern’s roster has hovered but lower than many FBS programs that carry many more than that.
“At some point down the road, you’re running out of enough available spots,” Anderson said. “At some point, the funnel is only so big.”
Visperas commits to Tennessee Tech
Former EWU quarterback Kekoa Visperas announced his intention to transfer to Tennessee Tech earlier this week on social media.
Visperas started all but one game over the past two seasons. In three seasons at Eastern, he completed 69% of his passes for 5,247 yards, 39 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. He also ran for 666 yards and 12 touchdowns over that span.
Tennessee Tech, another FCS program, finished 7-5 last season and 6-2 in the Ohio Valley Conference.
EWU tight end Jett Carpenter, who also entered the transfer portal this month, committed to play next season at Nevada.
Offensive line coach Hayden Mace also left the program this month, joining former EWU offensive coordinator Jim Chapin at Central Michigan. Mace and Chapin will hold the same coaching post for the Chippewas as they did for the Eagles.
Chism adds more honors
Coming off one of the best seasons in EWU history, wide receiver Efton Chism has been named a first-team All-America selection by five organizations this offseason, including the FCS Athletics Directors Associations, the Associated Press, Stats Perform, American Football Coaches Association and FCS Football Central.
Chism has also accepted an invitation to compete in the Hula Bowl on Jan. 11 in Orlando, Florida.
Last season, he caught 120 passes, an EWU single-season record, for 1,311 yards and 13 touchdowns.