WHEELING, W.Va. — District Judge John Preston Bailey issued a 14-day temporary restraining order against the NCAA on Wednesday, allowing undergraduate college athletes that have transferred multiple times to play immediately.
The ruling came inside a second floor courtroom in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia as part of the Ohio v. National Collegiate Association (NCAA) case in which Attorney Generals from seven states, including West Virginia, had filed for the TRO.
Tennessee, Illinois, North Carolina, Colorado and New York joined West Virginia and Ohio in the lawsuit against the NCAA.
A hearing on the restraining order in Wheeling is set for 10 a.m. December 27 when a more permanent ruling is expected.
Inside the courtroom Wednesday, Bailey heard remarks from RaeQuan Battle, a fifth-year basketball player at West Virginia yet to play over the Mountaineers’ first nine games this season as a result of being a two-time undergraduate transfer.
That was part of a separate case — Battle v. NCAA — and though the cases were consolidated, Bailey said he “didn’t have enough information or time” to rule on Battle’s personal case. However, the judge’s decision to grant a TRO against the NCAA opens the possibility for Battle and teammate Noah Farrakhan to begin game competition for the Mountaineers on Saturday against Massachusetts.
The WVU Department of Athletics released a statement Wednesday afternoon, saying:
“We are aware of the ruling today handed down by Judge John P. Bailey of the United States District Court for Northern West Virginia. We are consulting with WVU’s General Counsel along with outside counsel prior to making a determination on the eligibility status of any of our student-athletes. We will discuss this with our student-athletes to make the best decision possible taking into consideration the potential consequences of our decision.”
Part of the TRO issued Wednesday prevents the NCAA from enforcing its Restitution Rule, meaning the organization cannot issue punishment in the future for use of ineligible players.
Battle previously had a waiver denied by the NCAA and his subsequent appeal was also denied.
He testified for approximately 40 minutes Wednesday, touching on the start of his college career at Washington, where the native of nearby Tulalip, Wash., spent two seasons with the Huskies. Battle discussed the death of his grandmother during the COVID pandemic, along with several other people he considered close that passed away from drugs or alcohol abuse.
“I couldn’t be as consistent at Washington. I was going down a dark hole,” Battle said.
Having grown up on the Tulalip Indian Reservation, Battle left Washington after two seasons and transferred to Montana State.
He mentioned wanting to get away from home his first time in the NCAA Transfer Portal, though Battle said Montana State and Idaho State were his only Division I offers.
Battle settled on Montana State, where his game blossomed while he developed a strong bond with then-Bobcats head coach Danny Sprinkle.
At the conclusion of last season, Sprinkle accepted the coaching position at Utah State. He had guided Montana State to consecutive Big Sky Conference Championships and NCAA Tournament appearances, the most recent of which Battle scored 27 points in an opening-round loss to Kansas State.
When Sprinkle opted to move on, so, too, did Battle, who ultimately chose West Virginia.
“Where I’m from, not many kids go this far,” said Battle, who also cited friendships with Washington natives and former WVU players Emmitt Matthews Jr. and Erik Stevenson as part of his reasoning for joining the Mountaineers.
Battle cited improving his mental health as a reason for picking the Mountaineers, along with his instant connection with interim head coach Josh Eilert, who previously lived for a time on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota.
Battle was expected to be a prominent piece for WVU in the event he gained eligibility. While he has yet to appear in a game for the Mountaineers, Battle is permitted to practice and travel with the team.
“I came here for academics and basketball,” Battle said. “It hurts when the ball is tipped off and I’m not able to play with my teammates. That’s what hurts most.”
During cross examination, Benjamin Bailey, a Charleston-based attorney representing the NCAA, questioned Battle on the impact of name, image and likeness leading him to West Virginia, to which Battle said he did not have NIL opportunities at Montana State and would play basketball at WVU without NIL being a factor.
Bailey followed up by asking Battle if in the event he became eligible, would he want to use his final year of eligibility knowing nearly 30 percent of the regular season has passed.
“I have established myself with this team,” Battle said. “If it’s 18 games, it’s 18 games.”
Phillip Bartz, also part of the legal team representing the NCAA, said Wednesday West Virginia had submitted more evidence to the NCAA on Battle’s behalf and it was still being reviewed as recently as Wednesday morning.
Through Zoom video, Bailey also heard testimony from two Division I athletes unable to play to this point in their respective seasons as a result of transferring multiple times. Miami Ohio quarterback Maddox Kopp, previously at Houston and Colorado, spoke first. Then it was Jamille Reynolds, a Cincinnati basketball player previously at Central Florida and Temple.
Kopp is eligible to play for the RedHawks’ in Saturday’s Cure Bowl against Appalachian State because he completed his second semester at Miami Ohio on Wednesday and the bowl will be played the day after the conclusion of the semester.
Following virtual testimony, Bailey announced a 45-minute break before returning to issue the TRO at 1:30 p.m — some three and-a-half hours after deliberations began.
“This order paves the way for student athletes, like RaeQuan Battle, to play in the sport they love and continue improving themselves,” said Patrick Morrisey, West Virginia Attorney General. “We are looking forward to proving definitively that the NCAA has violated the Sherman Act by failing to maintain a consistent and defensible transfer rule and by denying these student athletes the chance to play.”
The NCAA is expected to appeal Bailey’s ruling.
On hand representing Battle were Morgantown-based attorneys James “Rocky” Gianola and John Fulton Gianola.
“We’re kind of dissecting the order and trying to make sure we explain exactly what the judge is saying, what our options are and the extent of the order,” Rocky Gianola said. “Then we’ll probably go from there. We’ll seek a little bit of clarification from the NCAA on how they plan to interpret the ruling and then we’ll be moving forward.”
Gianola is hoping for more clarification on if Battle were to play in the Mountaineers’ next three games during this 14-day stretch — contests December 20 against Radford and December 23 against Toledo follow the matchup with the Minutemen — and then Bailey rules in favor of the NCAA in two weeks, would Battle have exhausted his final season of eligibility playing a few games?
Gianola is hopeful that would not be the case, but couldn’t say for certain.
“The NCAA is kind of notorious for leaking out little snippets instead of being totally upfront and I’ve not seen anything on their website that says it,” Gianola said. “We’re hoping that’s their interpretation, because that’s our interpretation of it.”
For the time being, Gianola says he’s relieved Battle was able to have his voice heard on a large platform.
“There’s some relief that at least somebody besides our law firm has listened to him and understands what he’s going through — that being the judge,” Gianola said. “I don’t think the NCAA or public can understand the amount of stress that he’s been under his entire high school and collegiate career. To a certain extent, this validated what he’s been through.”