The 2026-27 college basketball season begins officially in 11 days, and there are still hundreds of student-athletes in eligibility limbo thanks to the NCAA's awkward rollout of the new 5-in-5 rules.
Arizona forward RJ Godfrey is among those still fighting for eligibility. He and the other plaintiffs in Georgia remain ineligible, while plaintiffs in cases filed in California and Ohio - and many other, smaller lawsuits - are eligible to compete this season, at least for now.
Speaking at Big 12 media day on Wednesday, coach Lloyd made it very clear he supports Godfrey - and the other class of 2022 seniors - in their fight for another year of eligibility.
Oct 21, 2026; Kansas City, MO, USA; Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd is interviewed during the Big 12 Media Days at T-Mobile Center. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
"It's hard for me to sit here and not be able to defend somebody just because they entered college in the class of 2022, when everybody before them got five years and everybody after them is going to get five years," Lloyd said. "I know there's two sides to every story, but we have a guy that's a true five-for-five. That's where I would draw the line, a true five-for-five I think you should be eligible."
Arizona landed a verbal commit from Godfrey on August 2, and he secured eligibility as the lead plaintiff in the Godfrey vs. NCAA lawsuit when a preliminary injunction was granted three days later on August 5. However, the case was stayed by the Georgia Court of Appeals on Sep. 9, and he has remained ineligible ever since - even as fellow fifth-year seniors had their eligibility reinstated in Ohio last week.
Godfrey is Arizona's Koa Peat replacement at power forward, coming over after four great years at Clemson - including 2025-26 when he averaged 12.0 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 1.5 assists while shooting a cool 62.7% on two pointers in 25.2 minutes per game.
Mar 19, 2026; Tampa, FL, USA; Clemson Tigers forward RJ Godfrey (0) participates in a practice session ahead of the first round of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Benchmark International Arena. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
The rugged, physical power forward is tailor-made to succeed in Lloyd's system, playing next to Mo Krivas and Ivan Kharchenkov in the frontcourt. While the Wildcats have seen promising signs from international freshman Maksim Brnovic and Nebraska transfer Ugnius Jarusevicius, it is clear Godfrey is necessary for this team to make another Final Four run in 2027.
"You wish cooler heads could prevail and give these kids the opportunity they deserve," Lloyd continued. "These kids did nothing wrong, they are missing out on a life changing opportunity, not only for an experience but financially, just because of the year they graduated high school."
Arizona, likely without Godfrey, will host Eastern Washington in an exhibition game on Friday, Oct. 23. The game will tip at 7:00 PM MST and be broadcast on ESPN+.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/arizona as Tommy Lloyd speaks out on RJ Godfrey's eligibility battle ahead of Arizona's season .
