Wisconsin player files lawsuit against NCAA over Division II eligibility

In a lawsuit filed Wednesday against the NCAA in the U.S. Western District of Wisconsin, Wisconsin cornerback Nyzier Fourqurean is arguing for an extra year of eligibility because his season at Division II Grand Valley State should not count towards his overall eligibility. The NCAA recently denied Fourqurean’s request for another season.

In the 19-page filing, the Wisconsin cornerback is seeking immediate injunctive relief by the NFL Draft deadline of Feb. 7. He has an offer to return to the Badgers for the 2025 season.

Fourqurean’s lawsuit comes on the heels of Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia’s lawsuit, where he argued that because the governing body counts junior college seasons towards NCAA eligibility and athletes cannot redshirt after they have played four years, NCAA rules violate antitrust law. He was granted a preliminary injunction against the NCAA and is returning to the Commodores for a final season.

Not allowing Division II athletes to compete in a third and fourth year of FBS due to their previous academic career and limiting economic opportunities violates the Sherman Antitrust Act, Fourqurean argues.

“Preventing college student-athletes like plaintiff that attended Division II schools from competing in a third and fourth year of NCAA Division I football due to prior attendance at a Division II school, therefore limiting their economic opportunities to participate in the NIL marketplace available to Division I athletes, and otherwise unreasonably restrain competition in violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Act,” the lawsuit states.

The NCAA has faced an onslaught of battles in the courtroom. The U.S. Department of Justice settled with the NCAA last spring, allowing athletes to transfer an unlimited number of times. In Tennessee v. NCAA, athletes can now negotiate NIL contracts before announcing commitments thanks to a preliminary injunction.

“For the reasons stated above, plaintiff asks this Court to judge, hold, and declare that he has an economic right to market and license his name image and likeness,” Fourqurean’s lawsuit states. “For the reasons stated above, plaintiff asks this Court to judge, hold, and declare that he has two more years under the Sherman Act analysis and one more year of eligibility to play varsity football at UW-Madison, under the waiver analysis.”