Is this the last year of the 6th year COVID student athlete?

This is the last year for non-redshirt covid year athletes. Meaning they were true freshman in the 2020 football season.

Next year will be the last year of standard redshirt covid year athletes. Meaning freshman in 2020 that took a redshift at some point in their career.

But this doesn't account for academic and medical redshirts. So you could 2020 freshman playing in 2026-2028 depending on the weirdness of ncaa waivers.

Anyone who entered college in 2020 and redshirted once between 2021-2024 is technically eligible to be back for 2025.

Guillory is a good example there as he's obviously redshirting this season at this point. Would assume he would want to be back after missing this entire season when he was a starter finally.

Nix only played 5 years.

Essentially any player that was in school during the 2020 football season gets 5 full seasons to play football. Redshirts are seasons that are granted to a player because they couldn't play the majority of that year for one reason or another. But you still only get 5 full years of football.

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Thanks. So sounds like you could have the 6th year player who was injured (like Guillory) but not the QBs starting their 6th season as a starter like Nix and Ward?

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Not neccessarily.

Tulane's backup quarterback Justin Ibieta is one of those guys that could be a 6-7 year guy.

2020 - True Freshman season - COVID, free year
2021 - True Freshman season - only played in 2 games, tore his labrum, and redshirted
2022 - Redshirt Freshman season - played in 4 games, tore his labrum again, possible medical redshirt
2023 - Redshirt Sophomore season - played in one game, tore his ACL, PCL, MCL, medical redshirt
2024 - Redshirt Sophomore (maybe even freshman?) season - missing entire year because of injuries.

There's a good chance he goes into 2025, his 5th year playing college football, with the eligibility of a redshirt freshman. It's more likely he'd be classified as a redshirt sophomore, but you get my point.

The NCAA has become really laxed on injury/redshirt waivers, and with the legal opportunity to make money in college, you'll probably see a lot more guys chase that 6th and 7th year of eligibility in order to stay in the game as long as possible. You can get an advanced degree while simultaneously profiting off of NIL. There's no longer a need to "get on with the next step of your life."

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and if he wanted to, he should get that red shirt.

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My understanding is he has or intends to apply for that.

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Josh Williams is currently a 6th year guy. Won a title in 19, got a degree, his MBA, is still in school, and is making NIL money It makes more sense for guys like him to stick around at this point.

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Emery also got his degree, not sure what post grad degree he is seeking, though. Also has a title from 2019.

Can't wait until this BS washes out of the college game. It was an understandable decision in 2020 in the midst of the pandemic. But it's been crushing for the HS recruits for four years and watered down the game.

My cousin starts for one of the Ivy’s and he’ll graduate this year and have two more years eligibility after this season

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with a torn labrum.........or something else. sheesh this kid is snake bitten.

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My exact thoughts reading that. Tear something every year and you can “not play” every year, forever.

7th yr, second medical redshirt John Emery says hey! JK!

Hope he rehabs great and makes it to the league!

Cam McCormack started his college career at Oregon in 2016 and is now playing his ninth season at Miami.

2016 Redshirt
2017 Played his first full season at Oregon
2018 Medical Redshirt
2019 Medical Redshirt
2020 Medical Redshirt
2021 Medical Redshirt
2022 Played full season at Oregon
2023 Played Full Season at Miami
2024 Playing his last (in theory) season at Miami

This is his 9th season of CFB. They did a story on him during the UF and Miami opener this season.

LINK