The Court of Appeals of Indiana refused Friday to pause an injunction that is keeping Kansas basketball forward Tre White, KU football players Chase Belcher and Clifton Thompson eligible for a fifth year. The ruling means the three athletes can keep playing for now while the case continues.
That matters immediately for KU because White and fellow returnee Melvin Council Jr. are expected to appear for the basketball team soon, and Thompson already debuted for the Jayhawks in their loss to Utah last weekend. Belcher has not yet played. Under the injunction’s terms, KU and the athletes face no punishment for taking part in games while the order remains in place.
Chief Judge Elizabeth F. Tavitas wrote the order, and the judges of the Court of Appeals concurred. The injunction from Monroe County, Indiana, covers 94 other plaintiffs as well, and it keeps open the possibility of a fifth year of eligibility for the group while the underlying case moves ahead.
Friday’s decision also ran against a pattern that has been common in similar eligibility fights, where trial court injunctions have often been stayed on appeal. Here, the Indiana court left the order in place, even after the NCAA asked for emergency relief. On Oct. 1, the Indiana Supreme Court already turned aside one attempt by the NCAA’s side to bypass the Court of Appeals and transfer the fight directly to the high court.
The NCAA could still try again in the Indiana Supreme Court, but the court does not have to take the case. If no further appeal is accepted, the lawsuit can move toward trial. For now, Kansas basketball stays in the clear, and White, Belcher and Thompson remain eligible unless a higher court changes course.
