Mike Brey was a pioneer.
Long before Fred Hoiberg and Eric Musselman were loading up on transfers at Nebraska and Arkansas respectively, Brey was one of the original advocates to take players as transfers and redshirt them in an effort to “get old and stay old”.
That philosophy allowed Notre Dame to become one of the most consistent programs in the country, regularly earning NCAA Tournament bids out of the old Big East and now the ACC.
It’s one of the many reasons why Brey — like many coaches — is concerned about the NCAA’s decision to consider a one-time transfer exception for all student athletes during their college career.
The Division 1 Council has tabled the issue for now and will again revisit it in January. A year in residence is currently only required in football, men’s and women’s basketball, baseball, and ice hockey.
“Every transfer I’ve taken both here at Notre Dame and when I was at Delaware did the year in residency and they’re better off for it,” Brey said Monday on the College Hoops Today Podcast. “Is it this generation? It is this culture — that they’re just impatient about waiting a year and getting stronger as a basketball player? What about the academic component and the graduation rates?”
When Brey was a player, he transferred from Northwestern State to George Washington in 1980 and says he would not have graduated if he didn’t have to serve a year in residence as a transfer.
A U.S. News report in 2016 said that students lose approximately 14 to 18 credits whenever they transfer from one public school to another. The report also stated that a student loses approximately 18 credits when they transfer from private school to a public school and an average of 17 to 25 credits when they transfer from for-profit schools to any other kind of institution.
“There’s no way I would have graduated if I didn’t have a year in residence,” added Brey, who has recently served as President of the NABC’s Board of Directors. “I needed five years. Now there wasn’t summer school like there is now, but I wouldn’t have graduated in four years. But with the vote coming in January — I don’t know. It seems like the momentum is for these waivers.”
Therein lies the root of the problem.
The NCAA’s decision to grant some transfers waivers and deny others has created a gray area that’s been polarizing for college athletics, especially men’s basketball.
According to the NCAA, 240 student athletes who transferred applied for immediate eligibility through waivers from July 1st, 2019 through Nov. 25th, 2019.
During that time period, 71.6 percent of those who applied for immediate eligibility in men’s basketball received a waiver to play without a year in residence. During the 2018-19 season, 79 student athletes applied for immediate eligibility in men’s basketball and 44 were granted waivers.
That same year there were 240 Division 1 transfer waivers according to the NCAA and 195 came from men’s basketball, women’s basketball, football, and baseball, which equates to 89 percent.
Is the NCAA’s desire to get out of the waiver business altogether fueling its desire to pass a one-time transfer exception for all transfers?
“It is disappointing on the part of the NCAA and I think a little weak on their part quite frankly,” Brey said when asked if he thought if the NCAA just wanted to get out of the waiver business. “Their explanation is ‘we have tried to weed through these waivers. Some of them have been presented with false information and lies and we’re forced to make a decision on whether or not this young man should be eligible right away.’ I just think that it is a safe political position to back it up and make it a one-time waiver for all transfers. I thought we could handle that stronger in Indianapolis. I definitely think that is the argument. They can’t get through the waivers. They feel there’s too much false information. There’s too much work and maybe a potential lawsuit if they grant it for one young man and not another. Coaches sound off publicly — they (NCAA) get bad press. I just don’t understand why we can’t see the big picture. A year in residency is a good thing.”
Brey though, like most coaches is bracing for the rule to eventually go through.
“Has the genie left the bottle?” he said when assessing the state of transfers. “I’m worried. Everyone’s in the position that it’s going to happen and can we put parameters on it like you can’t get a waiver after your freshman year. I don’t if that will go through, but I’m in favor of that. Will there be a date that these guys have to give in the spring (to declare that they’re transferring)? These are all things that are going to be worked out in January.”
Two power conference transfers — UCLA’s Johnny Juzang and Marquette’s D.J. Carton — have already received waivers from the NCAA granting them immediate eligibility for next season. Juzang and Carton transferred from Kentucky and Ohio State respectively.
With COVID-19 now a major factor across the globe, waiver submissions for transfers to play immediately during the upcoming season figure to reach astronomical heights.
