President Donald Trump recently signed an executive order that significantly changes the future of college athletes, establishing a strict five-year participation limit and allowing only one transfer during a collegiate athletic career.
The order, announced and signed during the height of the NCAA’s men and women’s basketball tournaments, will take effect on Aug. 1. The looming possibility of federal funding being pulled hangs over schools that do not comply with the rules.
This has sparked conversation among current and future college athletes. Lily Collins, a Pleasant Valley senior and University of Wisconsin-Madison rowing commit, believes that the executive order has both positives and negatives. “I think the transfer portal has been abused by some athletes, but sometimes the first school you choose doesn’t end up being the right fit for you,” Collins said. “The transfer portal gives athletes an opportunity to find the best program for them.”
For decades, college athletes have navigated a system that has allowed them to transfer multiple times and extend eligibility due to unique circumstances, such as COVID-19 and season-ending injuries. This executive order limits much of that flexibility.
“It’s all about adjusting to a new normal,” Collins continued. “and sometimes adjusting is hard when you’ve become so accustomed to one way.” This echoes the viewpoint of many critics, who question whether a federal executive order should influence college athletics, which have traditionally been managed by organizations like the NCAA.
Not only have athletes weighed in, but the order has also garnered the attention of sports fans. Pleasant Valley junior Addie Belman is strongly against the action. “I firmly believe that personal decisions made by college athletes should not be condemned by the President,” Belman said.
The long-term effects of this policy are still unclear. What is clear, however, is that this executive order marks a major shift in the ongoing evolution of college athletics and raises a larger political question of who is truly in control of the college sports.
