End Of The ‘Super Senior?’ NCAA Weighs Eligibility Age Limit Of 24

Among eligibility issues the NCAA has been discussing is a five-year window with which to complete athletic participation. That is part of President Donald Trump’s recently issued executive order that addressed a variety of topics, including for the five-year clock to begin ticking when an athlete turns 19 or graduates from high school, whichever is earliest. There would also be a limit on transfer opportunities.

“Clear, consistent and fair eligibility limits, including a five-year participation window,” the president stated.

It is a step in the right direction as far as reigning in the chaos that has become the free-for-all of collegiate athletics. Six- and seven-year players wearing the colors of four or five schools – or more – would come to an end. Nothing has been voted on let alone become the law of the land, though there appears be some urgency to get something on the books.

Many players had collegiate careers extended by multiple medical waivers and/or the free year of eligibility granted by the NCAA due to the pandemic. NIL has also played a major role in creating “super seniors.” Why not take advantage?

Athletes could still take advantage, albeit in a tighter timeframe with fewer transfer opportunities. Multiple transfers would still be permitted, though not more than two and the second transfer would have an educational component attached to it. Specifically, transferring a second time could not be done unless the athlete received a four-year degree.

“Super Seniors” no more

Kudos to Tyler Shough for making the most of a situation presented him. He might be the best example of a seven-year player who turned his final season into something far more than the end of his college career, something that would not happen with a five-year window and age limit.

Shough turned 25 one month into the 2024 season, his seventh as a college quarterback and only one with Louisville. In neither of his previous six and largely injury-riddled seasons – three each at Texas Tech and Oregon – did he play in more than seven games.

In his lone year with the Cardinals, the 6-foot-5 Shough, who never lacked the arm strength that attracts NFL scouts, threw 23 touchdown passes and only six interceptions. It was a performance that led to being drafted in the second round (40^th) by the New Orleans Saints, for whom he started nine games as a 26-year-old rookie in 2025.

Cam Rising completed three years with two universities and all of six pass attempts by the time he became a household name in Salt Lake City. He redshirted at Texas in 2018, did the same at Utah in 2019 and had his 2020 pandemic season come to an end due to injury in the much-delayed season opener.

The next two years were fruitful for Rising. That was until he tore multiple ligaments in his left leg during the 2023 Rose Bowl, which commenced an injury-marred conclusion to a career that came to end during the 2024 season at age 25. Incredibly, Rising had the option of returning for an eighth season before opting to hang up his helmet.

Then there is TJ Finley, the poster child for the transfer portal run amok. The former prized SEC recruit was with seven schools, though did not make it to preseason camp with two of them, including Incarnate Word earlier this year before opting for a shot at a pro career.

Finley took the field for LSU, Auburn, Texas State, Western Kentucky and Georgia State, where he played last season. He also spent spring 2025 at Tulane before he was suspended, which ultimately led to his transfer to Georgia State.

No more Aussie “papa bears”

ProKick Australia was founded in 2007 and has since sent numerous players to the collegiate ranks, a handful of which made it to the NFL. Mitch Wishnowsky, Michael Dickson, Lou Hedley and Cam Johnston are examples of those who have played on Sunday.

Wishnowsky, who recently re-signed with the Buffalo Bills, was 26 at the conclusion of a three-year stint at Utah that included winning the Ray Guy Award as the nation’s top punter. Hedley was 26 when he began punting for Miami in 2019. Because of the additional year of eligibility granted by the NCAA coming out of the pandemic, Hedley would have been a 30-year-old, seventh-year senior with the Hurricanes in 2023. Instead, he opted for the NFL draft and signed with the Saints.

Andrew Stokes was a 30-year-old senior at USF in 2024 and only a decade younger than coach Alex Golesh, who enjoyed having the former warehouse manager (in his native Perth) on his team.

“The young guys literally follow him around,” said Golesh, who at the time was in his second of three seasons at USF before taking over at Auburn. “He is like papa bear.”

Should the age limit be implemented, Aussie specialists would still have an opportunity to come to the States to receive an education and a shot to play in the NFL. The difference is they would have to speed things up. It has been done before, and Michael Dickson is the blueprint.

Dickson began his collegiate career with the Texas Longhorns in 2015 at the same age (19) as most of his teammates. He proceeded to have a decorated three-year career that included multiple on-field and academic accolades. After forgoing his senior year, and after winning the Ray Guy Award in 2017, Dickson was the highest of four punters selected in the 2018 NFL draft when the Seahawks called his name in the fifth round.