NCAA to Remove Scholarship Limits for All Sports

It is now being reported that the NCAA is planning to eliminate scholarship limits across all sports starting in the 2025-26 season.

Yahoo Sports states that under the new revenue-sharing model, sport-specific scholarship restrictions will be removed, allowing schools to offer scholarships to all rostered athletes.

While new roster limits are pending final approval of the House case settlement, expected limits for swimming & diving are 23 men and 35 women, at least in the SEC and Big Ten.

The elimination of scholarship limits coincides with the House case settlement, which allows schools to pay student-athletes NIL money. This change means having a limited number of scholarships would be impractical when other athletes can earn NIL compensation.

During a Tuesday meeting with power conference commissioners, new football roster limits were reportedly set at 105, increasing the current scholarship limit by 20 from 85.

For baseball, the current scholarship limit of 11.7 is expected to be replaced by a roster cap of 34. Softball and volleyball are expected to have roster limits of 25 and 18, respectively, significantly higher than their current limits of 12.

Additionally, all sports will be considered “equivalency sports,” allowing partial scholarships to be distributed among all athletes. Previously, sports like football and basketball were “head-count sports” where players on scholarship had to receive full grants.

Schools will not be required to fill all roster spots with scholarships, leaving opportunities for walk-ons.

Yahoo Sports reports that power conference programs anticipate spending an additional $3 million to $7 million annually on scholarships.

The settlement terms in the House v. NCAA case are expected to be filed on Friday, detailing the $2.77 billion in back pay to former athletes and the specifics of the new revenue-sharing model.