Big 12 prohibits pro athletes from returning to compete in college

The Big 12 has adopted a rule prohibiting athletes who have played professionally from returning to compete in college, mirroring the decisions made by the Big Ten and SEC conferences. According to the conference's statement issued on August 26, an athlete is considered a professional if they declared for a league's draft without timely withdrawing, were on a professional team's roster, or signed a contract with a professional league for athletic services.

This prohibition follows the case of tight end Dae Quan Wright, who sought to sign with LSU after a judge granted him a fifth year of eligibility. Wright signed with the Philadelphia Eagles after the draft and was subsequently claimed on waivers by the Browns, but was later waived. The SEC's ruling, which applies to both football and basketball, would likely prevent Wright from returning to college, even though the Big Ten's rule only addressed football.

The ACC has not yet implemented a similar policy, but discussions are ongoing. The NCAA's regulations allow foreign basketball players like Mo Krivas and Ivan Kharchenkov from Arizona to compete in college, provided they do not later play professionally in their home country before returning to college.