Wisconsin badgers should lose Nyzier Fourqurean for the next university football season, after the successful attraction of NCAA. On Wednesday, a federal judge ruled that the cornerback had exhausted his eligibility and cannot continue to play university football in 2025.
In February, Fourqurean received a preliminary injunction from the American district judge William M. Conley, allowing him to preserve his eligibility. This came after having filed a complaint against the NCAA, arguing that its two seasons in the state of D-II Grand Valley should not count for its eligibility for Wisconsin.
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Michael Crooks, the lawyer for Nyzier Fourqurean, argued that the refusal of the NCAA of his fifth year of eligibility violates the antitrust law of the United States. This comes into play because it limits the ability of the cornerback to capitalize on lucrative financial opportunities on today’s university football market.
“What we need are significant exceptions to the eligibility rules now that they have become of a commercial nature,” said Crooks (via Illustrated Sports). “We are not asking the court to throw eligibility rules in their entirety.”
Sports lawyer Darren Heitner noted on X that the key question in the case of Nyzier Fourqurean before the American Court of Appeal for the seventh circuit was his inability to define the relevant market. This is generally considered a critical component in antitrust proceedings.
The Court of Appeal criticizes the district court for having granted Fourqurean the previous injunction. Despite this, the Court of Appeal acknowledged that Fourqurean could still succeed in proving its complaint and ordered the district court to accelerate the current dispute.
The NCAA says that the injunction of Nyzier Fourqurean will modify the basic rules
After Nyzier Fourqurean obtained the injunction which allowed him to return for his fifth season in February, the NCAA published a statement, in disagreement with the decision. The organization has argued that granting it another year of eligibility would change its established rules.
“The NCAA supports all students-athletes maximizing their name, their potential for image and resemblance, but today’s decision creates even more uncertainty and can lead to countless high school students to lose the possibility of competing in university athletics,” said NCAA (via the Associated Press).
“The modification of the application of fundamental eligibility rules-approved and supported by membership leaders-who are designed to help guarantee that competition is safe and just for current and future students makes an even more unstable changing environment,” he added.
The case of Nyzier Fourqurean is only one of the eligibility disputes that the NCAA had to face in the last two months. One of the most notable is the trial of Diego Pavia, contesting the NCAA eligibility rule to the former JOCO athletes. Disputes highlight the many problems resulting from the body in the midst of changes in college athletics.
Edited by Parag Jain
