An executive order signed by Ohio Governor Mike DeWine on Tuesday would allow athletes from the Class of 2022 who have not entered professional competition to take a fifth year of eligibility at schools within the state. That development adds further complications to a collection of lawsuits — some already filed, others still being prepared — pending across the country, each seeking court orders to block the NCAA's position that athletes who enrolled in 2022 fall outside the eligibility framework established by the new "five-for-five" provision, under which a student-athlete receives five years of competitive eligibility beginning from the date of initial enrollment.

DeWine's directive positions state law as taking precedence over NCAA policy. Objections from officials in other states followed relatively quickly. Oklahoma Attorney General Mike Hilgers described DeWine's directive as without precedent and expressed doubt that any state hosting Big Ten Conference members — including his own — would find such an order legally binding.

NCAA President Charlie Baker issued a statement contending that eligibility rules for college athletes fall outside the reach of any state governor's executive authority — a form of directive that, by its nature, binds only the agencies and operational policies of the issuing state. Executive orders carry no legal weight over outside entities, and enforcement agencies are generally not required to follow them.

DeWine's directive reached every college and university across Ohio, yet private institutions sit beyond the authority of executive orders, and even publicly funded campuses — Ohio State included — hold no binding requirement to act on such guidance.

The Protect College Sports Act — legislation the U.S. Senate has voted to approve with the express purpose of settling disputes of this nature — stands in direct tension with that directive. Any executive order DeWine has put in place would lose its force if the bill clears the U.S. House of Representatives and receives Trump's signature. Attorneys are expected to file court challenges against the directive.

DeWine's order opened eligibility for Class of 2022 athletes through the 2026-27 school year, yet the window for actually using that eligibility is narrow — team rosters are largely set and seasonal schedules are already underway. No timetable has been set for how quickly — or whether — any schools will act on DeWine's directive.

Among the FBS programs spread across Ohio, eight institutions compete at that level — with Ohio State carrying the Big Ten banner, Cincinnati aligned under the Big 12, and six additional schools fielding teams through the Mid-American Conference. Roster spots across football programs had already been filled for several weeks by that point, leaving any newly approved eligibility with limited opportunity to affect on-field competition.