A scholarship certainty turned into scrambling mode. Now, even with another scholarship in hand, it’s still a year-to-year guessing game.
Etzio is a senior at an excellent baseball academy. An outstanding defensive catcher, he can also rake.
During his sophomore year in high school, Etzio entered into a verbal agreement to play baseball for a New England university. For the next two years, Etzio spoke to no other colleges, nor would coaches from other colleges approach him because of the agreement.
Then, in fall 2024, the NCAA settled landmark class action lawsuits totaling $2.8 billion. The lawsuits were initiated by college athletes who claimed they were denied opportunities to earn income from endorsements and media appearances, alleging violations of antitrust laws.
One ripple effect of the settlement was that in July 2024, in anticipation of the settlement, the NCAA reduced roster sizes for baseball from 40 to 34. The immediate impact on Etzio: the university’s coach phoned him to tell him he had revoked his scholarship.
Etzio and his dad, Carl, went into a mad scramble to obtain another college baseball scholarship. The problem was compounded by the fact that catchers, shortstops, and pitchers are the first targets of college baseball coaches. As a result, many of the scholarships for catchers were already awarded.
Father Carl: We crammed two years’ worth of recruiting into two weeks. We sent 115 emails to head coaches and one text. Etzio got a dozen replies ranging from ‘We are no longer recruiting in your class given the NCAA roster limits,’ to ‘We’ll come watch you,’ to ‘Come to our camp.’ We went to two camps after he spoke with the coaches to make sure it wasn’t a money grab. The one text he sent was to a college coach who responded by saying ‘Let’s have a chat.’ That chat took place on a Friday, and it was to invite Etzio to tour the school and meet in person the following Monday. At the meeting, the coach told Etzio, ‘I know how you are and I’ve seen you play. Here’s your scholarship offer.’ Etzio accepted.
Not all these stories have a happy ending. Approximately 96 percent of high school athletes never go on to play in college.
Many college baseball coaches use fall ball to pare down their rosters. Etzio’s university could have as many as 41 athletes competing for the 34 slots in the baseball roster. That includes eight seniors who were seemingly finished with their college careers but have an extra year of eligibility under the class action settlement–and that’s before transfers and eleven preferred walk-ons.
Courtesy Anchor of Gold
The issue of fifth-year eligibility is a thorny one. In a lawsuit against the NCAA, a judge granted Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia a fifth year of eligibility. Pavia played one year at a junior college, which the NCAA considered a year of eligibility, but the courts overruled the NCAA.
The settlement allows colleges to offer baseball scholarships to all 34 players on their roster. Previously, Division I schools could distribute 11.7 scholarships across a baseball roster of 32 players. But not all colleges will be able to afford scholarships for every player. Instead, colleges might look for athletes who may not need the help because they have lucrative Name, Image, or Likeness (NIL) deals, which are a key component of the settlement.
Are there any remedies for this sea change in college baseball recruiting?
Carl agrees that reducing roster sizes (enlarged during COVID) is the right move, though he feels the timing of the decision – July, so late in the recruiting window – was awful. However, he believes the transfer portal issue needs to be addressed. “The court’s decision to give the junior college kids an extra year is fascinating,” he says. “You’ve just committed money to a set of incoming freshmen, and now you have some kids currently on a scholarship who may stay. Etzio’s university has eight of those junior college transfers who may get to play another season.”
As a result, some athletes will not make the 34-man squad. The coach might not keep all eight of the transfers, or not renew the scholarship of a player who didn’t perform well, or cut an incoming freshman while still giving him the scholarship money. The problem could be solved by reverting to a maximum of four years of time spread out over five years rather than allowing a full five years of service. That may entail an uphill battle through the courts, however.
Most D1 scholarships are renewable on an annual basis. This brings much uncertainty to student-athletes who may not be able to afford to continue at the college without the scholarship. The problem could be solved by awarding four-year scholarships, although colleges may be reluctant to accept the idea.
But they shouldn’t, given how much money they rake in from their student-athletes. Pre-COVID (in 2019), of the $15.8 billion in revenues from athletics at Division I schools, only $2.9 billion went to athletes as athletic scholarships, and one percent was spent on medical treatment and insurance. Even with the NIL agreement, approximately 80 percent of the money comes from donor collectives, and the other 20 percent comes from business endorsements. So the universities are not paying.
Etzio has a binding one-year contract that cannot be rescinded unless he is ineligible to play, which includes injury. According to Carl, the two best players on the team are the senior catchers. One will be moving on, while the other gets an extra year because he played one year at a junior college. In any case, if Etzio continues to perform as he has, he could be the future backstop for the team. Still, renewal of his scholarship each year is not guaranteed.
“It’s a total guessing game,” says his dad. “Especially because you don’t know what kids will be disgruntled at their current school and decide to enter the transfer portal and want to come to Etzio’s school. So a good coach is keeping my scholarship money in their pocket for those kids.”
