Judge Grants Injunction Allowing Wisconsin CB Nyzier Fourqurean to Play Sixth College Season

The ruling challenges the NCAA's five-year eligibility rule, citing antitrust concerns and unique personal circumstances in Fourqurean's case.

Wisconsin cornerback Nyzier Fourqurean has been granted a preliminary injunction by U.S. District Judge William Conley, allowing him to play a sixth season of college football in 2025.
The NCAA's five-year eligibility rule was challenged on antitrust grounds, with the court finding that it unfairly limits NIL opportunities for athletes like Fourqurean, whose marketability peaks later in their college careers.
Fourqurean's 2021 season at Division II Grand Valley State, which followed the death of his father, was cited as a unique circumstance justifying an exception to the five-year rule.
Judge Conley emphasized that the NCAA must create meaningful exceptions to its eligibility rules to avoid unfairness, though he stopped short of requiring the NCAA to abolish the rule entirely.
The NCAA expressed concerns that the ruling could lead to broader challenges to its eligibility rules and called for congressional action to stabilize the landscape of college athletics.