DeWine grants Ohio college athletes fifth year of eligibility

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signed an executive order that gives a number of college athletes a fifth year of eligibility.

The order, announced Tuesday, Oct. 13, is the latest twist in a months-long saga that has created headlines in courtrooms around the country. The news came three weeks before the start of the 2026-27 college basketball season.

According to a press release, Executive Order 2026-04D "gives Ohio's public and private colleges and universities the option to allow all otherwise eligible student-athletes from the high school class of 2022 to compete despite the NCAA's current interpretation of its new eligibility rule."

Said DeWine, "When the rules change, fairness has to remain part of the equation. We want Ohio's student-athletes to have the same opportunity as student-athletes in other states."

While local college basketball programs such as Dayton, Miami and Wright State don't have players on the roster who will benefit from the order, their opponents do.

Dayton, for example, plays Cincinnati in November. One of Cincinnati's key players, if he's now eligible, will be Utah State transfer MJ Collins, who averaged 17.5 points per game last season.

The executive order does not appear to help former Dayton guard Javon Bennett because he's not on the roster of an Ohio team. He transferred to Gonzaga in the spring after playing one season at Merrimack and three at Dayton.

In June, Bennett was one of 15 Ohio college basketball players — all of whom started their careers in 2022 and played four seasons — who filed a lawsuit seeking an injunction against the NCAA's age-based eligibility model. The new rule allows athletes to play up to five seasons in five years but excludes athletes who exhausted their eligibility under the old rules in 2026.

The NCAA has fought the lawsuit — and others like it across the country — for months and will continue to do so, according to a statement by NCAA President Charlie Baker on Tuesday.

"The Governor of Ohio cannot legislate NCAA eligibility rules," Baker said. "One elected official seeking to make their own rules for their own schools' advantage is a terrible way to run athletic competitions and precisely why Congress must pass the PCSA as soon as possible.

"And not only did NCAA members vote unanimously to implement the age-based eligibility change in this way, the Ohio Court of Appeals just recently agreed with that decision.

"The Ohio Court of Appeals isn't alone in siding with the NCAA on this issue as multiple appellate courts have now recognized the importance of consistent application of NCAA eligibility rules and the significant disruption that results when eligibility standards vary from institution to institution or state to state.

"The NCAA will protect the interests of all member institutions and student-athletes.

"Eligibility rules established through the Association's governance process have been and will continue to be applied consistently across the membership by the NCAA including in the state of Ohio."