The NCAA’s offer of an extra year of eligibility due to the pandemic sets up for a very interesting 2021 College Football Season. Hundreds of older, experienced players have chosen to stay another year. This means all eligible players will be granted an additional year because last year did not count towards any athlete’s college eligibility. The big difference is there is no limit on college scholarships. Scholarship restrictions will return next year as the NCAA did not want to punish anyone who was on scholarship last year and had their season interrupted due to the pandemic. Schools are not required to offer scholarships to returning players. According to an Associated Press review of rosters, more than 1,000 scholarship players are expected to take advantage of the NCAA’s extra year of eligibility.
These “Super Seniors” should have a major impact on the 2021 season. Power rankings in all pre-season publications will be 5-10% higher due to the increased number of returning players to each College Football team. It will be especially interesting for teams like Miami who will be led by Super Senior QB D’Eriq King who decided to return another season leading the Hurricanes.
Returning seniors will be at an all-time high this year.
Expect a more competitive season with more experienced teams returning. While the Big 5— Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State, Oklahoma and Georgia— lost their normal number of players to the draft, smaller schools will be able to return a large portion of their team from last year. It is probable the gap between the top teams and the rest of the teams in each conference will be smaller than usual as the next tier of teams will be stronger. More competitive games seems like a win for the College Football fan.
Get ready for an exciting year in College Football as the season is just around the corner with the first games starting on August 28, 2021.
