Fleck said the Gophers still are awaiting the NCAA's decision on the eligibility of defensive back Craig McDonald.

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BleedGopher

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Per Randy:

• Fleck said the Gophers still are awaiting the NCAA's decision on the eligibility of defensive back Craig McDonald, the former Minnehaha Academy standout who transferred to Minnesota from Auburn after spending two seasons at Iowa State. The Gophers have requested a waiver in hopes of McDonald being immediately eligible. If they don't receive the waiver, McDonald wouldn't be eligible to play until the 2024 season.

www.startribune.com

Gophers football preparing for the unknown against Nebraska's new coaching staff

Gophers coach P.J. Fleck's staff has studied video from Matt Rhule's previous stops before Nebraska.
www.startribune.com www.startribune.com

Go Gophers!!
 


At this point would seem likely he won’t be eligible but agree that it doesn’t seem like it should take this long for decisions to get made on these issues.

Sucks for the team and player to be stuck in limbo waiting to find out.
 

btowngopher said:
FFS…why does it require such a long time to get a ruling on these? I assume he has been allowed to practice this whole time with the team. Why did it only take Justin Fields like a month to get cleared?
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I believe the reason Fields got cleared quickly is because his reason for transferring stemmed from a baseball player at Georgia using a racial slur directed at Fields.

He also hired an attorney to handle it which was very smart. A lot of players just file the waiver and wait for the NCAA which of course makes arbitrary decisions with seemingly arbitrary timelines.
 

MNVCGUY said:
At this point would seem likely he won’t be eligible but agree that it doesn’t seem like it should take this long for decisions to get made on these issues.

Sucks for the team and player to be stuck in limbo waiting to find out.
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Decision has been made that he isn’t eligible
This is an appeal for a waver
 


Xerxes_ said:
I believe the reason Fields got cleared quickly is because his reason for transferring stemmed from a baseball player at Georgia using a racial slur directed at Fields.

He also hired an attorney to handle it which was very smart. A lot of players just file the waiver and wait for the NCAA which of course makes arbitrary decisions with seemingly arbitrary timelines.
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I feel like they should just handle them in the order of receipt. How can they prioritize based on all the different possible transfer reasons?
 

Some guy said:
Decision has been made that he isn’t eligible
This is an appeal for a waver
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This is my assumption as well. Have you heard something concrete?
 

MNVCGUY said:
At this point would seem likely he won’t be eligible but agree that it doesn’t seem like it should take this long for decisions to get made on these issues.

Sucks for the team and player to be stuck in limbo waiting to find out.
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The Gophers are low on the NCAA proverbial totem pole.

All kidding aside, it is a case-by-case basis. If Craig’s case is cut-and-dry, he would have been cleared right away.

There is a positive for him to sit out a year. He will have a year to get engaged in all aspects of Gopher Culture and Development.

OT: It is wonderful to top MN kids who chose to go elsewhere come back into the fold. Players like Quinn Carroll and now Craig McDonald. IMHO, the time away at other schools provide them with a different perspective and gratitude.
 




Some guy said:
The fact he isn’t eligible is a fact based on rules

The thing we are waiting for is a waver that gets around the rule
If the ncaa never says anything he isn’t eligible


He isn’t unless they say he is
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So you do not know the status of his waiver or if the team has submitted an appeal for an unfavorable waiver decision?
 

matt said:
So you do not know the status of his waiver or if the team has submitted an appeal for an unfavorable waiver decision?
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He has no waiver

We do know he hasn’t been given an answer regarding his appeal though. Meaning he currently is ineligible.
 

Some guy said:
He has no waiver

We do know he hasn’t been given an answer regarding his appeal though. Meaning he currently is ineligible.
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There are effectively three steps in this process. Steps 2 and 3 are optional and up to the student-athlete and team.

1. The rules are applied.
2. A waiver to the application of the rules can be submitted. An NCAA committee makes a decision regarding the waiver.
3. The student-athlete and team can appeal the waiver decision. An appeals committee makes a final decision regarding the issue.

Are we on step 2 or 3?
 




kg21 said:
If he was at Ohio State, he'd be playing.
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I’m not sure. The committee denied an eligibility waiver request from UNC’s star WR transfer who transferred back home. They have submitted an appeal and are still waiting on that. The NC governor has made statements that the NCAA should grant the appeal. I don’t think we’ll see the Minnesota governor campaigning for Craig McDonald’s eligibility though.
 

matt said:
I’m not sure. The committee denied an eligibility waiver request from UNC’s star WR transfer who transferred back home. They have submitted an appeal and are still waiting on that. The NC governor has made statements that the NCAA should grant the appeal. I don’t think we’ll see the Minnesota governor campaigning for Craig McDonald’s eligibility though.
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It’s also a complete waste of time for a governor
 



I would be curious to know what the justification was given in the waiver request.

As far as can be assumed, he used up his free transfer going from Iowa State to Auburn. That the coach then left Auburn .... sorry but in my opinion isn't good enough for another free transfer. You should commit to a program, not a coach.

If he gets the waiver for this year, great! But unless there is a sick immediate family member or some other provable, tangible hardship he suffered at Auburn ... I don't see why he has a leg to stand on.
 

McDonald situation aside I am actually ok with the NCAA getting much tougher on second transfers and making guys sit a year in most cases. As long as they are consistent which we all know is rarely the case when you talk about the NCAA and enforcement.
 


MplsGopher said:
I would be curious to know what the justification was given iipn the waiver request.

As far as can be assumed, he used up his free transfer going from Iowa State to Auburn. That the coach then left Auburn .... sorry but in my opinion isn't good enough for another free transfer. You should commit to a program, not a coach.

If he gets the waiver for this year, great! But unless there is a sick immediate family member or some other provable, tangible hardship he suffered at Auburn ... I don't see why he has a leg to stand on.
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I believe he also participated in Spring Practice before transferring
tough to justify a waiver, unless it is due to some immediate family member issue or provable hardship
 

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