SAN ANTONIO — Alijah Martin has vivid memories of his freshman year at Florida Atlantic University, a time when COVID-19 protocols dominated college sports. Empty arenas, consistent nose-swab testing, and bubble environments were standard. Reflecting on the period, Martin recalls, “You go through all the practice and preparation, only to find the opposing team is sick leading to canceled games. The impact was profound—no play meant no progress, no opportunity to improve, and no new game footage.”
Despite its challenges, Martin’s freshman year is something he can now appreciate. Today, he finds himself in a bustling locker room at Florida’s Alamodome, celebrating his fifth year as a guard for the Gators, who have made it to the Final Four. Due to NCAA measures during the disrupted 2020-21 season, athletes like Martin were granted an additional year of eligibility, which altered the traditional four-year collegiate athletic structure. This season marks the last of what has become known as “COVID years,” with players like Martin, Johni Broome of Auburn, LJ Cryer of Baylor, and Duke’s Sion James and Mason Gillis extending their college careers beyond the usual timeframe.
“It’s been a different era,” Broome reflected, having started his collegiate career at Morehead State before transferring to Auburn. The unanimous Associated Press first-team All-America pick remarked, “Many players who have been around for a long time; their time is finishing. It’s going to usher in a new era of basketball without the fifth-year players.”
Broome’s journey has been illustrative of this transition. His freshman year culminated in a loss against West Virginia in the bubbling, spectator-limited 2021 NCAA Tournament. That tournament took place in Lucas Oil Stadium, repurposed to host two games simultaneously due to social distancing protocols, manifesting a surreal March Madness experience. On the opposite side of the curtain, Purdue’s Mason Gillis was encountering his debut as a college player, with both players experiencing losses.
As the Final Four unfolds in San Antonio, there are eight fifth-year players among the top-10 scorers from Auburn, Florida, Duke, and Houston. Players like Gillis and Broome played in that unusual tournament four years ago, and Houston’s LJ Cryer added a championship title with Baylor against Gonzaga. Other long-term players like J’Wan Roberts have completed all five years with Houston, contributing sparingly in the team’s loss to Baylor.
Entering the final acts of their collegiate saga, these veterans are down to their last two games, a sentiment echoed by Duke coach Jon Scheyer. “Having older players is beneficial, but there’s a limit. We’ve used this opportunity wisely, and having someone like Mason Gillis has brought great value to our team.”
The extended eligibility provided through the transfer portal has offered an avenue for veteran players to remain at a collegiate level while delivering impressive performances. Coach Scheyer and others have benefitted from this shift, as the average experience level went from 2.41 years pre-pandemic to 2.62 years at present, according to NCAA data.
For those making critical moves in their career, like James, “These years offered a blend that might never be replicated, with experienced players delivering heightened competition,” he observed.
This year’s Final Four is notable as only the second instance where each competing team is a top seed, following a similar event in 2008. Notably, each team in the current Final Four will feature at least one fifth-year starter. Nevertheless, as the current NCAA basketball season draws to a close, so too does the fifth-year era.
Martin, reflecting on these unprecedented times, states, “The NCAA gave us that year back because the COVID period was anything but normal. Without another global event of similar magnitude, this extended eligibility won’t come around again.” As the athletes gear up for their final games, the unique chapter in college basketball marked by extended eligibility reaches its conclusion.