Shutterstock
Every single Power Four conference has now slammed the door on pro football players trying to make their way back into college locker rooms.
The ACC was the last domino to fall, adopting a policy that bars that kind of comeback. And it’s happening fast – several members of the 2022 high school class, hoping for a fifth year of eligibility, have already taken their fight to the courts, challenging a new NCAA eligibility model that leaves them out in the cold.
The Big Ten kicked things off on Tuesday. Football players are now ineligible if they signed a pro contract, appeared on an NFL roster, or declared for the draft as an underclassman without withdrawing.
Following meetings with the Presidents, Chancellors, and Athletics Directors of the Southeastern Conference, the SEC will enforce the following policy: pic.twitter.com/LohWnb7G1J— Southeastern Conference (@SEC) August 25, 2026
“The conference continues to evaluate potential rules restricting professional athletes in other sports from conference competition,” the league said in a statement.
The penalties aren’t small, either. The Big Ten later revealed that violators face a coach suspension covering half the season, plus an institutional fine.
By Tuesday afternoon, the SEC jumped in too – but went a step further, applying the same rule to both football and basketball programs.
Notre Dame didn’t wait around either. Officials there informed both the Big Ten and SEC that the Fighting Irish would fall in line with a similar policy.
Then came Wednesday, when the Big 12 passed its own version – one that stretches across every sport, not just football and basketball.
The ACC’s language mirrors the SEC’s approach pretty closely, shutting the door on pro football and basketball players looking to return.
“The Board’s action reflects the ACC’s commitment to preserving college sports as an opportunity for college students that is clearly distinct from professional sports, protecting opportunities for current and future student-athletes and promoting competitive equity,” the ACC said in a statement.
This isn’t just a Power Four thing, by the way. The Mountain West rolled out an identical policy just hours after the ACC made its move.
Where this all started
None of this happened in a vacuum.
Reports surfaced that former Cleveland Browns tight end Dae’Quan Wright and former New Orleans Saints defensive tackle Zxavian Harris were planning to leave their NFL futures behind for a shot at LSU. Both players spent time under Tigers head coach Lane Kiffin back when he was at Ole Miss.
Kiffin didn’t shy away from the topic on Monday. During a press conference, without confirming any actual signings, he defended going after pro-level talent, saying flatly: “[They’re] either going to play for you or they’re going to play for someone else around the country.”
That same Monday, SEC presidents held a virtual meeting to hash out their stance on the issue – and made it clear they weren’t interested in welcoming pros back into the college ranks.
“College athletes, not former professional athletes, have been at the heart of the Southeastern Conference. Individuals who choose to leave college athletics, sign professional playing contracts, and compete professionally should not then be permitted to return to college competition,” the SEC’s statement read in part.
Once Tuesday’s vote went through, SEC schools lost the option entirely – no more rostering athletes who fit that description, whether in football or basketball. Commissioner Greg Sankey now holds what’s being described as “full and unlimited authority” on the matter, including the power to suspend a school from competition altogether, according to Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger.
More legal challenges on the way?
Here’s the thing though – putting up these guardrails doesn’t make the conferences bulletproof. If anything, it paints a target on their backs.
Instead of the NCAA fielding all the lawsuits like it has in the past, the conferences themselves could soon become the defendants.
Dellenger flagged this exact concern earlier in the week:
“Important to note that league-wide rules do not absolve a conference from legal challenges,” Dellenger wrote on Tuesday. “In fact, conferences will likely now be sued by athletes as defendants in separate lawsuits or added as defendants in existing lawsuits, many times in front of the same judges.”
And if it turns out these conferences can’t actually enforce what they’ve just passed – if their hands get tied by the courts – commissioners and presidents will need to figure out a totally different approach. They’d have to find some way to sanction individual schools directly for fielding an athlete who doesn’t meet the new eligibility rules, per Dellenger.
