Athletics Veritas is a weekly series aimed at helping higher education executives, faculty, and other stakeholders stay tuned in on trending national issues impacting college athletics, especially NCAA Division I. Athletics Veritas is created by senior DI athletic administrators around the nation.
Term-In-Ology: The Role of a Business Day
As some fall sport student-athletes finished their playing seasons in recent weeks and reflected on what’s next, some might be considering a midyear transfer to another Division I institution. For purposes of applying recruiting, transfer, and eligibility rules in the NCAA Division I Manual, a “business day” is defined as any weekday that is not recognized as a national holiday, including any weekday during which an institution is closed for other reasons (e.g., holiday break).
In the recruiting context, when a student-athlete requests that his or her name be entered into the NCAA transfer portal, the student-athlete's institution shall enter his or her information into the portal within two business days of receipt of a written notification of transfer from the student-athlete.
Another rule connected to transferring that pivots on the application of business days is when a student's previous institution denies his or her written request for the release tied to the one-time transfer exception or enters a denial of the one-time transfer release in the NCAA transfer portal. If such a denial occurs, the institution shall inform the student-athlete in writing that he or she, upon written request, shall be provided a hearing conducted by an institutional entity or committee outside the athletics department.
The institution shall conduct the hearing and provide written results of the hearing to the student-athlete within 15 business days of receipt of the student-athlete's written request for a hearing. The student-athlete shall be provided the opportunity to actively participate (e.g., in person, via telephone) in the hearing. If the institution fails to conduct the hearing or provide the written results to the student-athlete within 15 business days, the release shall be granted by default and the institution shall provide a written release to the student-athlete.
The application of a business day also has eligibility implications. A student-athlete's eligibility to participate in post-season competition occurring between terms shall be determined within 14 business days (regardless of the date on which grades are posted or submitted) after the date of the last scheduled examination listed in the institution's official calendar for the term that is ending.
If the postseason event occurs prior to the conclusion of the 14 business days, eligibility shall be determined by using grades from the immediately preceding regular academic term (e.g., fall term if certifying for a bowl game), provided a sufficient number of grades from the term have been posted. All grades posted in accordance with institutional procedures by 5 p.m. local time on the day prior to the postseason event must be considered.
If the postseason event occurs prior to the conclusion of the 14 business days and an insufficient number of grades from the immediately preceding term have been posted, eligibility shall be determined by using grades from the most recent regular academic term for which a sufficient number of grades have been posted.
Athletics Veritas is presented for information purposes only and should not be considered advice or counsel on NCAA compliance matters. For guidance on NCAA rules and processes, always consult your university’s athletics compliance office, conference office, and/or the NCAA.
