NCAA Issues Statement in Response to Legal Win for WVU Football Players

The NCAA issued a statement in response to the WVU football players being granted an injunction and access to playing during the 2025 season.

“This ruling will lead to high school students losing opportunities to compete in college athletics and it erodes the academic standards that have for decades ensured student-athletes obtained an education. The NCAA and its member schools are making changes to deliver more benefits to student-athletes, but the patchwork of state laws and differing court opinions are why partnering with Congress is essential to provide stability for all college athletes,” reads the statement.

A day after the conclusion of a hearing about the four WVU players fighting the NCAA for waivers, a U.S. District Judge John Preston Baile granted a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction to Justin Harrington, Tye Edwards, Jimmori Robinson and Jeffrey Weimer, as first reported by Sam Ehrlich.

They filed a lawsuit against the NCAA earlier in the month.

While this decision does not end the matter completely, it will allow them to play for West Virginia in 2025. This comes after an NCAA attorney openly argued Robinson should be deemed academically ineligible during the hearing.

West Virginia added these players as transfer additions at different points throughout the offseason. Robinson is viewed as most important player among the group, with some believing he could become a star pass rusher in the Big 12.

On July 22, ex West Virginia and current Nevada wide receiver Cortez Braham learned he’s been granted a preliminary injunction that will allow him to play a seventh year of college football.

Braham, who transferred to Nevada after his WVU exit during the 2023 season, has been pursuing an extra season since filing a lawsuit against the NCAA in May.

Brahma’s case stems from the new rules concerning eligibility for players who spent time at a junior college. Prior to transferring up to the FBS level and joining WVU, Braham played at Hutchinson C.C., in Kansas.

At the time, it was believed that Braham’s legal win opened up the door for Robinson and the other West Virginia transfers with junior college years to take the field as Mountaineers in 2025.

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