The crowd that crows about college football chaos compelling Congressional intervention will love this one, even if it’s not much of a surprise.
Earlier this week, former Texas offensive lineman Cole Hutson secured a temporary restraining order allowing him to return to college football despite entering the draft, not being picked, participating in the Browns’ and Cowboys’ rookie minicamps, and not being signed by either team.
Via Pete Nakos of On3.com, a Texas judge granted the request for extra-extraordinary relief — one that often is presented and decided without the defendant having a chance to be heard. The next step will be a hearing on a motion for a preliminary injunction, which would extend the TRO through the resolution of the case.
It’s very hard to secure a TRO. Hutson’s success suggests that he’ll also get a preliminary injunction at the hearing set for August 3.
Hutson’s case follows a recent ruling by an Ohio judge granting a preliminary injunction to 24 athletes based on an age-based eligibility model for a fifth year. Hutson has played four years of college football, appearing in 48 games and making 23 starts.
While Hutson has yet to rejoin a college program, it appears that Texas would be willing to bring him back.
“If it ultimately all goes through, we’re getting a veteran player, right?” Longhorns coach Steve Sarkisian said, via Ralph D. Russo of The Athletic. “At the end of the day, there’s nothing like having an experienced player on your team, in your locker room, in the offensive line room. What does the future hold? I don’t know. I haven’t seen Cole. It’s been seven months since the last time we played. So there’s a lot that we have to kind of sort through and unpack. But if we’re fortunate enough to have him back, it’d be great.”
The naysayers will claim that the sky is falling, given that Hutson donned an NFL uniform. But he never signed an NFL contract. He was never paid to play pro football. In the recent past, basketball players who had been drafted by the NBA had been permitted to return to college.
It’s a narrow ruling, applying only to players who fit within the new NCAA eligibility rule. The new standard provides players with five years of eligibility “if they enroll in college no later than the academic year after their 19th birthday.”
