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NCAA fights Providence duo’s bid for a fifth season
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- NCAA fights Providence duo’s bid for a fifth season
The fact the NCAA informed a federal judge that Providence guard Derek Simpson is simply attempting to reopen an eligibility request that was already rejected is the gist of an MLex summary of the association's filing, posted late Thursday. A hearing is set for Monday.
According to MLex, the NCAA opposed a temporary restraining order over how it is implementing its five-year eligibility rule. Its argument is that Simpson is skipping around a first-filed, certified federal class action.
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Whatever judgment comes out of that case would bind him anyway. The MLex piece is a summary, so the full filing is worth reading when it's available.
Simpson and Joseph Pinion filed the same kind of suit
Both Friars are seeking a fifth year. Sam Ehrlich reported that their TRO hearing is Oct. 19 at 11 a.m. ET by Zoom, before Judge Melissa DuBose.
GoLocalProv's account of the suits says they accuse the NCAA of implementing the rule on June 24 in a way that singles out athletes who graduated high school in 2022. Pinion's filing adds that the NCAA denied a waiver at the staff level and again on appeal, per Yahoo Sports .
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Simpson is no marginal case. One writeup lists his last season at Saint Joseph's as 13.8 points per game, a 91.7 percent free throw rate and an Atlantic 10 first-team nod.
Isaac McKneelyof the Louisville Cardinals celebrates a three point basket against Joseph Pinion of the South Florida Bulls.Ishika Samant / Getty Images
Rhode Island courts haven't helped these athletes so far
GoLocalProv notes that three recent efforts by athletes in Rhode Island state courts failed. A Providence men's soccer player, Cameron Yriondo, was denied in late September , and two URI football players lost a similar bid. The basketball players chose federal court and an antitrust theory instead.
The wider federal picture is mixed. A Colorado judge granted a July 31 TRO covering the high school class of 2022, and the NCAA appealed, calling the ruling "egregiously wrong." Yahoo has since reported that a Colorado federal judge stayed a preliminary injunction in that line of litigation.
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Monday's hearing arrives with the roster already shrinking
Providence lost Dink Pate to the G League on Friday, as McNamara reported . Pinion and Simpson are the last two eligibility cases on the roster.
TRO rulings tend to come quickly, though nothing guarantees a decision Monday. The Friars open exhibition play Saturday against Pittsburgh.
Related: Coach's Corner: Duke Blue Devils Reloaded, Ready for National Title Run
This story was originally published by Lindy's Sports on Oct 18, 2026, where it first appeared in the College Basketball section. Add Lindy's Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
