REDSHIRT RULES

[tiger241345162816 0]

Below is information directly from the NCAA website clarifying the redshirt and medical harship waiver (aka medical redshirt) rules.  There has been a lot of discussion on these boards lately regarding these rules and I thought I would post the rules so we all know them.  (NOTE:  This post has been modified to condense it down to the areas of the rules that matter for our message board discussions)

REGULAR REDSHIRT

Redshirt Definition

The term "redshirt" is used to describe a student-athlete who does not participate in competition in a sport for an entire academic year. If you do not compete in a sport the entire academic year, you have not used a season of competition.

Each student is allowed no more than four seasons of competition per sport.  You should know that NCAA rules indicate that any competition, regardless of time, during a season counts as one of your seasons of competition in that sport. It does not matter how long you were involved in a particular competition (for example, one play in a football game, one point in a volleyball match); you will be charged with one season of competition.

MEDICAL REDSHIRT RULE

14.2.4 Hardship Waiver. A student-athlete may be granted an additional year of competition by the conference

or the Committee on Student-Athlete Reinstatement for reasons of “hardship.” Hardship is defined as

an incapacity resulting from an injury or illness that has occurred under all of the following conditions:

(a) The incapacitating injury or illness occurs in one of the four seasons of intercollegiate competition at any

two-year or four-year collegiate institutions or occurs after the first day of classes in the student-athlete’s senior

year in high school;

( The injury or illness occurs prior to the first competition of the second half of the playing season that

concludes with the NCAA championship in that sport (see Bylaw 14.2.4.3.4) and results in incapacity to

compete for the remainder of that playing season; 

© In team sports, the injury or illness occurs when the student-athlete has not participated in more than three

contests or dates of competition (whichever is applicable to that sport) or 30 percent (whichever number is

greater) of the institution’s scheduled or completed contests or dates of competition in his or her sport.

[guerra aguila 0]

Thats a lot of information. I quit reading after the first paragraph.

[tiger241345162816 0]

Maybe I will edit it down to the important points.

[tiger241345162816 0]

By the way, everyone always refers to Cam when they are informed of the Regular Redshirt Rule and asks why he has two years at AU after playing part of 2 years at Florida and a full year at Blinn CC.  The answer that I have found on that is that Cam injurd his ankle early in the 2008 season and apparently qualified for a medical hardship waiver. 

[AU60 0]

What the rule really means is that if a player has played in 3 or less games prior to the 6th game and suffers an injury, he is eligible to apply for a medical redshirt. These types of redshirts are almost always granted and the injury does not have to be severe. This is totally different from a hardship redshirt, which actually gives a player a 6th year.

[tiger241345162816 0]

What the rule really means is that if a player has played in 3 or less games prior to the 6th game and suffers an injury, he is eligible to apply for a medical redshirt. These types of redshirts are almost always granted and the injury does not have to be severe. This is totally different from a hardship redshirt, which actually gives a player a 6th year.

Not exactly.  There is no "medical redshirt" rule per se, they are all medical hardship waivers.  While the rule requires the injury to be "incapacitating" it appears this is a relatively low standard and the NCAA appears to almost always grant the waiver request as long as it is supported by medical records.  A 6th year may be granted (although rarely) when a player loses more than 1 season to an injury.  However, both of these instances fall under the medical hardsip terminology per the NCAA.

[caleb1633 1,418]

By the way, everyone always refers to Cam when they are informed of the Regular Redshirt Rule and asks why he has two years at AU after playing part of 2 years at Florida and a full year at Blinn CC.  The answer that I have found on that is that Cam injurd his ankle early in the 2008 season and apparently qualified for a medical hardship waiver. 

No way! Cam Newton can't get hurt! He's Superman! 

[AU60 0]

What the rule really means is that if a player has played in 3 or less games prior to the 6th game and suffers an injury, he is eligible to apply for a medical redshirt. These types of redshirts are almost always granted and the injury does not have to be severe. This is totally different from a hardship redshirt, which actually gives a player a 6th year.

Not exactly.  There is no "medical redshirt" rule per se, they are all medical hardship waivers.  While the rule requires the injury to be "incapacitating" it appears this is a relatively low standard and the NCAA appears to almost always grant the waiver request as long as it is supported by medical records.  A 6th year may be granted (although rarely) when a player loses more than 1 season to an injury.  However, both of these instances fall under the medical hardsip terminology per the NCAA.

I believe we both said substantially the same thing. Regardless of the technical name for it, everybody, including the coaches, calls it a "medical redshirt". I don't remember the last time one was denied.

[tiger241345162816 0]

I agree, I was just trying to be as clear as possible because this has come up in several discussion over the past few weeks.  Many people confuse the medical hardship/redshirt time qualifications with a regular redshirt and assume that a player that has played a few snaps early in the season can still get a regular redshirt. 

[NoALtiger 3,873]

Thanks for posting this. Perhaps this will help clear up the seemingly endless questions on redshirts.

[brad5628AU 35]

I have a friend from high school, Mike Ross #46 on University of Florida that was able to play in the first four games his freshman year('08), and he was redshirted. I haven't talked to him in a few months and he is in the middle of his season so I dont want to ask. I know he wasn't injured. Could he have written something down as an injury, as in like a fake or something to receive his medical redshirt?

[tiger241345162816 0]

I have a friend from high school, Mike Ross #46 on University of Florida that was able to play in the first four games his freshman year('08), and he was redshirted. I haven't talked to him in a few months and he is in the middle of his season so I dont want to ask. I know he wasn't injured. Could he have written something down as an injury, as in like a fake or something to receive his medical redshirt?

It is hard to speak to specific cases without all of the facts, but if he indeed redshirted in 2008, under the rules, he would only qualify for a medical hardship waiver (most commonly referred to as a medical redshirt).  To receive a medical hardship waiver, from everything I have read and heard, he would have to be able to supply medical records confirming the injury.  Could a relatively minor injury have been documented in a way to allow qualification for a waiver to be accepted? I would think so, but, of course, I have no idea about your friend's situation. 

Waiver's however are denied when the proper documentation is lacking.  See this story:

http://www.9wsyr.com/content/sports/su_sports/story/Aaron-Weaver-denied-medical-redshirt/IvQ-FWSAB0qMJBPNlZjGOQ.cspx

[AU60 0]

I have a friend from high school, Mike Ross #46 on University of Florida that was able to play in the first four games his freshman year('08), and he was redshirted. I haven't talked to him in a few months and he is in the middle of his season so I dont want to ask. I know he wasn't injured. Could he have written something down as an injury, as in like a fake or something to receive his medical redshirt?

It is hard to speak to specific cases without all of the facts, but if he indeed redshirted in 2008, under the rules, he would only qualify for a medical hardship waiver (most commonly referred to as a medical redshirt).  To receive a medical hardship waiver, from everything I have read and heard, he would have to be able to supply medical records confirming the injury.  Could a relatively minor injury have been documented in a way to allow qualification for a waiver to be accepted? I would think so, but, of course, I have no idea about your friend's situation. 

Waiver's however are denied when the proper documentation is lacking.  See this story:

http://www.9wsyr.com/content/sports/su_sports/story/Aaron-Weaver-denied-medical-redshirt/IvQ-FWSAB0qMJBPNlZjGOQ.cspx

A my favorite coach used to say: "You are so right Carl."

[WDEAUB 0]

Can a MOD PLEEEEEEEEEASE PHI THIS?!