Now is the time when student-athletes make their last push to meet the NCAA initial eligibility requirements to receive the scholarship they’ve signed for.  Some of them won’t make it.

To meet the NCAA initial eligibility requirements to receive a division I scholarship, student-athletes must graduate from high school, earn 16 credits in NCAA approved core courses, earn a qualifying score on a college entrance exam (SAT or ACT), and be certified as an amateur athlete.

Most college coaches will agree that the reason many student-athletes don’t meet these requirements is because they didn’t know the academic requirements existed until it was too late.  The academic requirements for eligibility begin in the 9th grade, however, most student-athletes don’t find out about the requirements until they receive interest from a college coach which, more than likely, will be in their junior or senior year.  By then, at least half of their high school career is gone and their GPA in the NCAA approved core courses is pretty much set.

This GPA is important because the NCAA uses a sliding scale to determine the SAT or ACT score that a student-athlete must earn in order to qualify.  The lower the core GPA, the higher the required test score.

In the past, student-athletes that were found to be in jeopardy of not qualifying had a number of remedies such as taking on-line courses or receiving individualized instruction to earn the required credits and increase their core GPA (as documented in the movie The Blind Side starring Sandra Bullock).

This loophole has been closed.  The requirements for non-traditional courses have been modified so it is much more difficult to receive credit for courses not taken in the classroom.

Each year, approximately 7% of the 150,000 certifications that are processed by the NCAA Eligibility Center are deemed academic non-qualifiers.  The sad part is that many of these athletes bet their future on their athletic ability and if that opportunity doesn’t happen, they have no backup plan.

Sure they can try going to junior college, but statistics show that half of all inner city youth that enter junior college, drop out in the first year.  It’s ludicrous to think that these student-athletes are going to suddenly place the necessary focus on education when they haven’t done so in the past.

This summer, when the NCAA Eligibility Center makes the final determination on the eligibility status of student-athletes, more people will wish they would have heard about this process much earlier in their high school career.

So, as you read about your favorite college’s stellar recruits, be aware that some of them may not be there when the fall season starts…and now you know why.

7 Key Facts about the National Letter of Intent (NLI)

With the signing period approaching, many student-athletes and their families will be asked to sign a National Letter of Intent (NLI) document.  Here are 7 things you should know about the NLI:

• The NLI is a binding agreement between the institution and the student-athlete – The student-athlete agrees to attend the institution full-time for one academic year and the institution agrees to provide athletic financial aid for one full academic year.
• The NLI must be presented with an athletic aid agreement – The NLI must be presented with an athletics financial aid agreement that provides a detailed description of the award for the listed academic year.

• The NLI is NOT required to receive athletic scholarship – While the NLI is not required to receive an athletic scholarship, understand that no financial aid commitment is guaranteed.  Once the NLI is signed, the athletic award amount becomes guaranteed and recruiting by all other NLI member institutions must cease.
• The NLI is binding with the institution, not the coach – If the coach leaves the institution (voluntarily or not) the provisions of the NLI remain in effect.
• The NLI does NOT guarantee the student-athlete a spot on the team – The NLI only guarantees that athletic aid will be awarded for one academic year.  All decisions on rosters and playing time are rendered by the coaching staff at the institution.
• Cosigners other than parent or legal guardian must be approved in advance – If for some reason the student-athlete’s parent or legal guardian is not available to cosign the NLI (death, incarceration, etc.), the person selected to cosign the NLI must be approved in advance by the NLI office.  The name of the person selected to cosign and their relationship to the student-athlete must be submitted to the NLI office to gain approval.  THIS PERSON CAN NOT BE A COACH OR ATHLETIC ADMINISTRATOR.
• The NLI is null and void if any of the following occur:
  • Denied admission to the university – If a review by the NLI office determines that necessary admission information was purposely omitted, the NLI MAY remain binding
  • Deemed a nonqualifier by NCAA Eligibility Center – If the student-athlete fails to meet the requirements for NCAA initial eligibility.
  • Recruiting violations – The institution is required to notify the student-athlete if a rules violation occurred that requires eligibility reinstatement.  At this time, the student-athlete has the option to have the NLI remain valid or be declared null and void.
  • Sport discontinued – If the sport listed on the signed NLI is discontinued at the institution.
  • Service in US armed forces/church mission – If the student-athlete serves active duty with the US armed forces or on a church mission for at least 12 months.
  • One year absence – If the student-athlete has not attended any two-year or four-year institution for at least one academic year, provided the request for athletic aid for a subsequent term has been denied by the institution.

Click these links for more information about the NLI or for a listing of NLI member schools.

New NCAA Initial Eligibility Standards go into effect beginning with the class of 2016. According to NCAA statistics, 35.2% of football players and 43.1% of men’s basketball players who enrolled in 2009-10 would not have met the 2016 NCAA initial eligibility standards.

Check out our Eligibility Section to make sure you understand the new NCAA initial eligibility standards and are on track to qualify.

Several professional athletes and coaches (including Boston Celtics Head Coach Doc Rivers) took time away from their busy schedules to share with Central Florida high school student-athletes, parents and coaches key insights from their own path to the pros.  These insights included best practices, pitfalls to avoid and words of wisdom from athletes that were successful in making their dreams of playing professional sports a reality.

Path2d1 is proud to host these events in local areas as an important resource in uplifting our communities using sports as a motivator for academic success. Contact us to see how our program could help increase high school graduation rates and college preparedness for your community. info@path2d1.org.

College is expensive.  Yeah. I know. The understatement of the year.  However, each year, there are thousands of high school athletes who cannot receive the athletic scholarship they were offered. These athletes can’t receive their scholarships, because they do not meet the NCAA initial eligibility requirements.  With the cost for tuition, books, and room and board rising each year, total college costs can EASILY eclipse $100,000.

So we asked college coaches and compliance officers why these athletes weren’t meeting the requirements.  The number one reason given was that the athletes and their parents did not know what the eligibility requirements were until it was too late to make sure they were met.  Now, there’s an app for that.

MyPath2d1 is a smartphone app that will make sure that you always have the NCAA eligibility requirements at your fingertips.  It also includes information on scholarships, recruiting rules, official and unofficial visits, and tips to help you meet the requirements.

Click here to learn more about MyPath2d1 smartphone app.