The April House v NCAA Hearing Could Reshape Recruiting

On Monday, the judge in charge of approving the House vs NCAA settlement (the one that will cause roster cuts and revenue sharing) led a hearing to make a final determination on the settlement. At this hearing, the judge could have decided to approve, deny, or request further changes to the settlement.

Before we dive into what happened, a quick reminder:

Recruiting is shifting fast - if you're feeling uncertain about what this all means for your swimmer, our 0 to Hero Recruiting Bootcamp is built to help families get organized, confident, and ready to adapt.

Camp starts April 27 - grab your spot now before it fills up.

So What Actually Happened?

Here are the three key takeaways for swimmers and families based on the latest hearing:

1. The judge didn't make a final ruling.

She issued recommendations and signaled she'll approve the settlement once those are addressed. Some experts expect this to take a few weeks; others say it could drag into months of new debate. This means athletic departments will continue to interpret potential changes and do their best to anticipate, but there is still no official guidance or new ruleset in place.

2. The judge recommended a "phase-in" for roster cuts.

One of the two major recommendations the judge made was to add a "phase-in" period for roster cuts. She didn't supply details as to what this should look like, but it likely means existing athletes wouldn't need to be cut because roster sizes would gradually reduce year over year (instead of all at once this spring). That's a positive for current NCAA athletes - since schools opting into the settlement may not need to cut rosters all at once. However, this will not affect recruits much, as the roster cuts are still in place and coaches will be recruiting based off of reduced future roster sizes.

3. For many programs, the damage is already done.

According to coaches we've spoken to, this delay may be "too little too late."

Even if final approval includes a more lenient transition, many schools have already cut swimmers who have entered the transfer portal. While these cuts could be undone, that’s extremely unlikely in this climate. Athletic departments are watching their budgets closely, and this settlement has been a warning shot that has already prompted change to reduce costs.

Plus, coaches may actually be looking forward to the smaller teams. As one coach told us "a lot of us have been saying the cuts could be a blessing in disguise… we're excited about smaller rosters."