Fantastically stupid NCAA rule may keep 24 year old from playing basektball

Submitted by Erik_in_Dayton on

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/8990418/orlando-sanchez-hopes-ncaa-hears-plea-lets-play-st-john-college-basketball 

Here's something to take our minds off of last night:

Orlando Sanchez, a 24 year old Dominican, is the player in question.  He's a 6'9" prospect with NBA potential who wants to play for St. Johns.  He didn't graduate from h.s. on time because, at age 17, he moved to Spain to work as a carpenter so that he could send money back to his ailing grandmother, a then-impoverished widow who raised Sanchez.  He eventually returned to the Dominican Republic and graduated from h.s. at age 21, and he currently has a 3.48 college GPA.  He has so far been barred from playing for NCAA basketball because of a now-abandoned rule (still in effect when Sanchez was 21) that said that any participation by an athlete who is 21 years or older counts as a full year of varisty competition.  Sanchez has, in the eyes of the NCAA, accordingly used up his eligibility because of the following:

* Sanchez  played eight games with a local club team in the Dominican Republic;

*Sanchez played 3:38 minutes at the end of a game for Dominican Republic national team in 2010;

*Sanchez played for a community college for apparently two years.

All of this was after he was 21, so he's exhausted his four years per the old rule.  He's waiting on an appeal right now.  Hopefully the NCAA will see the light or be struck down by Zeus. 

jmblue

February 28th, 2013 at 5:20 PM ^

If he played those two seasons more than two years ago, his  eligibility "clock" would have expired.  Once you enroll, you've got five years to use up your four seasons of eligibility.

Honestly, if he's a legitimate NBA prospect, he should just go pro.  At 24 he's already older than almost all rookies.

RedGreene

February 28th, 2013 at 11:45 AM ^

I don't have a dog in this fight but if I did have a dog -- which I don't but some day hope to but it would have to be hypoallergenic due to me being allergic to pet dander -- I would let the kid play. 

Tater

February 28th, 2013 at 12:50 PM ^

Isn't "fantastically stupid NCAA rule" a tad redundant?

At this point, the NCAA enforcement committe needs to prove that it is worth a bleep and give the NCAA a permanent "death penalty."

cbs650

February 28th, 2013 at 12:54 PM ^

He is currently enrolled at St John's not American University. Him and his grandmother reference him wanting to graduate from an american university. Thats the reason why St. Johns and Steve Lavin are an can petition the NCAA on his behalf.

MikeCohodes

February 28th, 2013 at 1:07 PM ^

it seems we will never run out of stories that can be started with those three words.  Good find.  I hope they let the kid play.  But it's the NCAA we're talking about here, so they probably will give him the shaft.

74polSKA

February 28th, 2013 at 1:36 PM ^

Can't they grant the kid a hardship redshirt or something?  At least that would allow him one year to show what he can do.  I don't know if this is possible but it makes sense, so the NCAA probably won't consider it.

Azulio

February 28th, 2013 at 2:42 PM ^

I think he should be ineligible, not because of those technicalities, but because he's 24. It's not fair and it's not safe for men in their athletic prime to be playing against 18 year olds, I didn't like it when it was Brandon Weeden and I don't like it now, and it further blurs the line in my opinion between collegiate athletics and professional sports.

Jon06

February 28th, 2013 at 3:36 PM ^

I don't see why the NCAA should waive anything here. He's not a "kid" like the coach keeps calling him, and it doesn't sound like a year at St. John's will be pivotal for his chances of playing professional basketball after college. It seems to me like the story should not be about an NCAA rule stopping a kid from playing a game he loves, but about St. John's trying to get an unnecessary waiver so their program can benefit from getting a year out of an adult athlete.

nowicki2005

February 28th, 2013 at 6:05 PM ^

So what you're saying is mcgary and spike should only get three years or else they will be 23 almost 24 year olds as seniors playing against 18 year olds? BYU shouldn't be allowe to even be a school?

Let the kid have a year of eligibility. He's played for oversees juco colleges basically? That's probably the equivalent of class C basketball in the state of Michigan and his national team? They wouldn't be able to compete against the top AAU teams.

Mr Miggle

February 28th, 2013 at 6:31 PM ^

Is this the Andrew Gaze rule? It's hard to know where to draw the line sometimes. Would it be different if he had played a larger role for their national team or played a full season for a club team?