SEC, Power 5 commissioners propose increased time off for student-athletes
By Andrew Olson
Published:
SEC commissioner Greg Sankey has joined with the other Power 5 commissioners in proposing changes that are intended to give students who play sports more time off. A joint release states, “The purpose of the changes is to rebalance the student experience between athletics and campus life, providing students with more time to focus on other college interests, including academics, work experience, travel, and additional rest.”
The Power 5 commissioners are introducing a concept called “Flex 21” intended to give students an additional 21 days in which they are free of required athletic activities during the academic year.
“We believe we have found the right balance between helping students participate in sports while also providing them with more down time,” the commissioners of the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, PAC-12 and SEC said in a joint statement. “Different sports have different demands and we think the concepts we’ve agreed to will help tens of thousands of students achieve more balance as they pursue their academic and athletic commitments.”
The new rule would mandate seven days off at the conclusion of the regular season, intended for recovery. Another 14 days would come during the academic year, either during the season or after the season, but during the academic year.
In season, all student-athletes would be guaranteed at least one day off each week from athletic activity or travel. The new rules would also mandate consecutive free nights (9 p.m. to 6 a.m.). Previous rules allowed teams to count travel days as a day off.
The commissioners’ release offers the following example:
For example, if a women’s rowing team schedules a 5:30am workout, the team must cease all required athletic activities by 9:30pm the evening before the morning workout. If a team has a 6:00am workout scheduled, all athletic activities would have had to end by 10:00pm the night before.
All Power 5 conferences will be able to add additional rules that they see fit. The issue is likely to be addressed at the NCAA convention in January 2017.
The full release as well as comparisons between the current rules and proposed changes can be viewed here.
Andrew writes about sports to fund his love of live music and collection of concert posters. He strongly endorses the Hall of Fame campaigns of Fred Taylor and Andruw Jones.
