Cade Tyson still awaiting Gophers eligibility as key hearing approaches

The 2026-27 Gophers men's basketball team will play a game, albeit an exhibition, this month, and we still don't know if last season's leading scorer, Cade Tyson, will be eligible to play. An Oct. 13 hearing in federal appeals court could provide more clarity on his situation.

Tyson is among numerous athletes across the country pursuing a fifth year of eligibility after the NCAA adopted a new age-based eligibility model earlier this year. Under the new rules, athletes generally can compete during a continuous five-year eligibility period that begins with either their initial full-time college enrollment or when they turn 19.

The transition rules, however, did not grant an additional season to athletes such as Tyson who exhausted their eligibility under the previous rules during the 2025-26 academic year.

Tyson was a member of the 2022 high school recruiting class and played four seasons of college basketball. He is among the athletes arguing that they should be allowed to compete for a fifth season under the NCAA's new model.

In early July, Tyson was among a group of 12 athletes named as plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit against the NCAA in Colorado. A federal judge eventually granted a class-wide preliminary injunction in late July that prevented the NCAA from enforcing its eligibility rules against qualifying athletes from the 2022 high school class.

But the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals later granted the NCAA's request to stay that preliminary injunction while the NCAA's appeal is pending. That means athletes whose eligibility depended solely on the Colorado injunction are once again ineligible unless they have obtained separate relief through another court.

Niko Medved and the Gophers revealed in early September that Tyson has re-enrolled in classes at the University of Minnesota and is practicing with the team, but his eligibility status remains uncertain. Roster restrictions and financial compensation concerns were cleared up, and we know that if Tyson returns to college basketball, it will be at Minnesota.

There's still a full month until Minnesota's regular-season opener on Nov. 2 against North Dakota, but there are a pair of exhibitions looming on Oct. 15 against Omaha and Oct. 23 against Creighton. It's fair to assume Minnesota would prefer some clarity on Tyson's status as it seeks to find its preferred rotation for the 2026-27 season.

The Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver is scheduled to hear arguments on Oct. 13 in Wisne v. NCAA , the case in which Tyson is a named plaintiff. Andy Greder of the Pioneer Press was the first to report the upcoming hearing as it relates to Tyson.

The hearing does not guarantee a ruling on Oct. 13, but the arguments could provide additional insight into how the appeals court views the dispute. The court is considering the NCAA's appeal of the preliminary injunction that had temporarily opened the door for Tyson and similarly situated athletes to receive another season of eligibility.

There have been numerous cases similar to Tyson's around the country, with courts reaching differing conclusions.

Most recently, on Friday, the Ohio First District Court of Appeals reversed a court's preliminary injunction that had allowed roughly two dozen Class of 2022 athletes to pursue a fifth season. A three-judge panel unanimously sided with the NCAA on the preliminary injunction, making the affected athletes ineligible again while that litigation continues.

Other athletes have successfully obtained temporary restraining orders or preliminary injunctions in separate cases, illustrating just how unsettled the eligibility issue remains.

Oct. 13 could provide more clarity on Tyson's path toward playing for the Gophers this season, but with eligibility lawsuits producing different results in courts around the country, a definitive answer may not come immediately.

We are in the age of big media consolidation and content networks. But even with the proliferation of AI, nothing can beat the quality and inherent knowledge of local sports journalism. Our writing room consists of a Wildcat, a Gopher, and even a Mustang. We know the Minnesota towns and the great names that played on its diamonds, courts, fields or rinks. Subscribe NOW to the new Bring Me The Sports newsletter . We would appreciate your readership and support!

This story was originally published by Bring Me The Sports on Oct 2, 2026, where it first appeared in the MN Gophers section. Add Bring Me The Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.