[CardinalSagehen]

Regarding Patterson:
I'm speculating here, but I think they might seek a medical exemption. He redshirted one year (2019), played 3 years (2021-2023), and participated in four games this season (if memory serves). There's a strong incentive for him not to attempt to return if he wants to play another year at Stanford. This would give him time to finish a graduate degree and would fill a big void on the interior DL with Phillips leaving and no big bodies in the pipeline.

That means Patterson is out of eligibility. He already redshirted, he can't do so again...unless he applies for a medical.

Right, that's exactly what I'm saying. The normal criteria for a medical exemption also include participation in less than 30% (rounded up) of the regular season contests. Do you think a medical exemption can be approved in his case, assuming they present medical information suggesting a risk of returning to play?

My view on the decision to return to play is that it's never black-and-white.  A highly motivated player like Sinclair might take great risks to play in his last Big Game, against medical advice. A player that is motivated not to play might have enough air cover from doctor's notes to justify a medical hardship waiver.

I'm not knowledgeable on the topic, but I took a quick look at this NCAA doc:
https://ncaaorg.s3.amazonaws.com/complia...rPoint.pdf

[CardinalSagehen]

Regarding Patterson:
I'm speculating here, but I think they might seek a medical exemption. He redshirted one year (2019), played 3 years (2021-2023), and participated in four games this season (if memory serves). There's a strong incentive for him not to attempt to return if he wants to play another year at Stanford. This would give him time to finish a graduate degree and would fill a big void on the interior DL with Phillips leaving and no big bodies in the pipeline.

That means Patterson is out of eligibility. He already redshirted, he can't do so again...unless he applies for a medical.

Right, that's exactly what I'm saying. The normal criteria for a medical exemption also include participation in less than 30% (rounded up) of the regular season contests. Do you think a medical exemption can be approved in his case, assuming they present medical information suggesting a risk of returning to play?

My view on the decision to return to play is that it's never black-and-white.  A highly motivated player like Sinclair might take great risks to play in his last Big Game, against medical advice. A player that is motivated not to play might have enough air cover from doctor's notes to justify a medical hardship waiver.

I'm not knowledgeable on the topic, but I took a quick look at this NCAA doc:
https://ncaaorg.s3.amazonaws.com/complia...rPoint.pdf