Zakai Zeigler, SEC’s 2-time defensive player of year, suing NCAA to play 5th season in 5 years

Two-time Southeastern Conference defensive member of the year Zakai Zeigler is suing the NCAA over rules limiting him to four seasons in a five-year window as an unlawful restraint of transaction under both federal and Tennessee laws Zeigler s lawsuit was filed Tuesday in the U S District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee The point guard played four seasons at Tennessee helping the Supporters to consecutive Elite Eight berths before graduating earlier this month The Vols went - during Zeigler s time with the school Zeigler was a third-team All-American this season which ended with Tennessee s loss to eventual national runner-up Houston in the Elite Eight on March We have requested a preliminary injunction to allow Zakai to compete in the upcoming season while pursuing his graduate studies according to a comment from the Garza Law Firm and Litson PLLC We look forward to a swift resolution of this matter so that Zakai can begin preparing for next season The NCAA stated in a comment the association fully supports athletes profiting from name image and likeness along with other benefits and is working for such reforms which includes a proposed billion settlement of an antitrust lawsuit A patchwork of different state laws executive orders and court opinions make it challenging for any league to operate on a fair playing field including at the conference level and that s why partnering with Congress to develop a national standard would provide stability for student-athletes and schools everywhere the NCAA reported This latest lawsuit against the NCAA notes Zeigler diligently completed his undergraduate degree in four years and graduated this month That makes Zeigler s lawsuit different from athletes who started careers at junior colleges or lower-division NCAA schools and are seeking a fifth season Yet the NCAA rule limiting athletes to four seasons during a five-year window keeps Zeigler from playing a fifth season and earning NIL money in the the majority lucrative year of the eligibility window for the vast majority of athletes according to the lawsuit Athletes who redshirt or take five years to finish an undergraduate degree can earn NIL money each of their five years The lawsuit also points to the NCAA s redshirt system controlling who gets access to a fifth year of eligibility The lawsuit asks that the NCAA rule be declared a violation of Section of the Sherman Act and Tennessee s Bargain Practices Act AP college basketball https apnews com hub college-basketball and https apnews com hub ap-top- -college-basketball-poll Source