Head coach Davis interested in possible NCAA one-time transfer rule change
Basketball Head Coach Keno Davis poses for a portrait on Nov. 29 in McGuirk Arena.
For college student-athletes everywhere, an opportunity for a one-time transfer without having to sit out a year could be on the way.
The NCAA is planning to vote on the transfer rule proposed this spring.
If the rule is passed, the NCAA Transfer Working Group will keep academic standards without tampering, according to Chris Vannini of The Athletic. There is a possibility it would be for only freshmen and sophomores.
Central Michigan men’s basketball head coach Keno Davis is interested.
"I understand why it's being visited," Central Michigan basketball coach Keno Davis said. "I think the thought of college athletes not being paid, being able to transfer and not sit out, needs to be looked at seriously because I feel like we should do more for the student-athlete."
CMU has been notorious for making transfer additions. The newest additions to the Chippewas are junior transfer guards Shawn Roundtree, who originally played for Missouri State and JUCO Mineral Area College, and Gavin Peppers, who has bounced around with three college teams.
Before coming to Mount Pleasanat, Peppers played 2014-15 at Olympic College, 2015-16 at Laramie County Community College and 2016-17 at Cleveland State, even though he did not see any action with the Magnus.
"We also don’t want to hurt the entire athletics system," Davis said. "If all of the sudden, transfers come in-and-out without having the year to sit, I'm not sure if it's in their best interest let along the school's (best interest)."
In the 2016-17 season, the Chippewas received national attention with superstar Marcus Keene. Before he averaged 30.0 points per game for CMU last season, he had to sit out a season after transferring from Youngstown State.
Along with a one-time transfer for underclassmen, Vannini reported discussions about a graduate transfer counting against a team roster for two years, depending on the graduate program. He said the feedback on the graduate transfer rule is mixed.
In the 2018-19 season, CMU gets another transfer in forward Kevin Hamlet. He spent the 2016-17 season at Polk State College in Florida before transferring to Mineral Area College, where the 6-foot-7, 209-pound forward is playing this season.
Hamlet averaged 8.4 points and 6.3 rebounds in 32 games at Polk State College. He was on the All-Suncoast Second Team.
Amidst all situations, Davis’ main hope is the NCAA will be able to help the student-athlete, but not hurt the athletic programs. It’s a team effort in his eyes.
"Hopefully (the NCAA) can come up with things to help out the student-athlete but also not hurting the athletic programs," Davis said. "Their well-being, their graduation rates, all of those things are being tossed around and hopefully (the NCAA) comes up with the right plan."
The ACC has sent out a different proposal for everyone, asking for players to be allowed to play in any four games and still be eligible for a redshirt, per Vannini. The AFCA has been pushing for this and it could be effective as soon as next season.
