Last year at this time, a mini-controversy erupted in the run-up to the first-ever College Football Playoff championship, with Ohio State being permitted an unlimited amount of practice time and for other football-related activities while Oregon was limited to 20 hours. The reason? OSU’s spring semester didn’t begin until after the title game, while UO’s began prior to it, putting into effect the NCAA’s 20-hour in-season restriction on “countable athletic activity.”
There’s a similar situation ahead of this year’s title game, with Alabama’s spring semester beginning two days after the Monday game, while Clemson’s kicked off Wednesday. Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney, though, had downplayed the significance of any kind of advantage the disparity may give the Tide.
“People make a big deal out of that,” Swinney said Tuesday. “First of all, Wednesday and Thursday they’ve got a little bit more time. Maybe they can have an extra meeting, something like that. Maybe they can do a walk-through in the morning and maybe a little extra film session. But I think at this point, to be honest with you, more isn’t better. I kind of believe in the less is more.”
That said, the school asked for, and was granted a waiver that asked for relief in regards to the “countable athletic activity” stipulations. Below is Clemson’s press release on the topic:Clemson athletic department officials received word from the NCAA on Wednesday its request for relief in regards to the football team’s preparation for the College Football Playoff National Championship will be granted. Clemson’s spring semester began with classes on Wednesday, beginning the limit on countable athletically related activity. Clemson requested permission to exceed the daily-hour limitation on a very limited basis and for student-athletes to miss class Thursday afternoon with professor approval. Clemson will not exceed the weekly 20-hour maximum.
“We’re appreciative of the NCAA working with us in granting this waiver to assist in our preparations for next Monday’s game while maintaining our commitment to student-athlete welfare,” Director of Athletics Dan Radakovich said. “As Coach Swinney pointed out, this was not going to be a big difference maker in our team’s schedule, but it’s great they’ve reached a solution that prioritizes the well-being of our student-athletes while allowing them to adequately prepare for the National Championship.”For NCAA accounting purposes, practices, weightlifting and any film sessions or meetings required by coaches count against the 20-hour weekly limit. Any game counts as three hours, regardless of how long it takes.
