Ep. 111: College Sports Eligibility Rules, with Diego Pavia's Lawyer, Ryan Downton!

About this episode

Ryan Downton discusses the challenges to NCAA eligibility rules and the future of college sports.

Send us Fan Mail College sports’ eligibility rules are under attack, and Ryan Downton is one of the lawyers leading the charge. He represents Diego Pavia and other athletes challenging NCAA limits on JUCO seasons, redshirts, and the five-year clock. We talk antitrust, fairness, the future of eligibility, and whether the NCAA can ever find stability in this new era. Thank you for listening! For the latest in sports law news and analysis, you can follow Gabe Feldman on twitter @sportslawg...

People in this episode

Host: Gabe Feldman

Guest: Ryan Downton

Topics covered

• college sports
• eligibility rules
• NCAA
• antitrust
• athlete rights
• sports law

Keywords

• college sports
• eligibility
• NCAA
• antitrust
• athletes
• JUCO
• redshirt
• five-year clock

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: NCAA

More episodes of SportsWise: A Podcast About Sports and the Law

• Ep. 113: The Path to Competitiveness in the Big 10, with Rutgers' AD, Keli Zinn · May 31, 2026 · 35 min
• Ep. 112: The Battle over NIL Compensation (aka, NIL, MMR, CSC and the NCAA) with Rakesh Kilaru, Outside Counsel for the NCAA · May 22, 2026 · 1h 2m
• Ep. 110: More College Sports, with UNC Athletic Director, Bubba Cunningham and Yahoo Sports Senior Editor, Ross Dellenger · April 28, 2026 · 60 min
• Ep. 109: Da Bears and a New Stadium!? With George McCaskey, Chairman of the Chicago Bears · April 16, 2026 · 29 min
• Ep. 108: The Battles that have Shaped the NFL Into a Cultural and Economic Powerhouse (and what it can teach us about the future of college sports), with Ken Belson · February 5, 2026 · 53 min
• Ep. 107: College Sports Contract Madness, NCAA Eligibility Battles, and More with Darren Heitner (aka the Lawyer who is Probably Representing or Working with Your Favorite College Athlete) · January 27, 2026 · 60 min