Ohio Order Allows Fifth Year Of Eligibility For Some College Athletes
Ohio's governor has signed an executive order allowing state colleges and universities to grant a fifth year of eligibility to athletes who graduated high school in 2022, deviating from a new NCAA rule.
Wilkes Barre Scranton Hazleton, PA, October 13, 2026 —
Ohio’s governor has signed an executive order allowing state colleges and universities to grant a fifth year of eligibility to athletes who graduated from high school in 2022. The action deviates from a new NCAA rule, according to the information provided.
The order gives Ohio’s state colleges and universities permission to grant the additional year to athletes in that graduating class. It does not establish, in the available summary, that every eligible athlete will receive a fifth year or that institutions must grant one.
Details about how colleges and universities may apply the order were not provided. The summary does not identify the governor, the date the order was signed, the specific NCAA rule involved, or the conditions athletes must meet to receive the extra year. It also does not say whether any institutions have acted on the order.
The stated eligibility group is limited to athletes who graduated from high school in 2022. The information provided does not describe how the order treats athletes from other graduating classes, nor does it explain what prompted the deviation from the NCAA rule.
The order’s practical effect will depend on decisions by individual state colleges and universities, which are allowed—but not stated to be required—to grant the fifth year. No further implementation details or responses from the NCAA, colleges, athletes or other officials were included in the summary.
Story summarized from the original created by EDDIE PELLS and ALANIS THAMES, Associated Press on www.2822news.com, see more information here.
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