National Letter of Intent penalties set to ease amid coaching changes, per report
By Keith Farner
Published:
National Letter of Intent changes are coming this year as players will not be penalized in the middle of a coaching change.
Multiple reports, including from Nicole Auerbach of The Athletic, explained that an NLI penalty will no longer apply if an NLI signee requests a release because of a head coaching change. The NLI penalty also won’t apply if athlete leaves after one academic semester or quarter. Previously, the current policy states that athletes would lose a season of competition if they got a release if the school doesn’t grant a full release.
The NLI is something high school athletes sign their at the end of each recruiting cycle to officially join their new college program.
Also, 4-year transfers can now sign a NLI after entering the transfer portal. This is not a requirement, but signing an NLI would trigger a recruiting ban.
The changes are by the Collegiate Commissioners Association, which has overseen the NLI program for nearly 6 decades. They take effect for prospective student-athletes signing 2024-25 NLIs.
A former newspaper veteran, Keith Farner is a news manager for Saturday Down South.
