Carson Cooper’s appearance on a recent podcast gave fans some potential false hope regarding a fifth year at Michigan State. He said that he had talked to the coaches about the possibility and he’s not willing to completely shut the door on a return if he were granted the opportunity.
Unfortunately, NCAA President Charlie Baker spoke about the proposed five-year window on Monday and he stated that he’s optimistic it will pass, but he’s going to recommend not grandfathering in current seniors because they already used up their eligibility.
I’m not sure how you can say that when these seniors have had to play against fifth and sixth-year guys throughout their careers and now they’re missing out on that chance but the class after them has a better opportunity?
I don’t think the NCAA cares much about being fair, but that’s kind of a wild take.
The statement from Baker got Michigan State fans wondering if Tom Izzo would even have a case to get Cooper back for a fifth year or if the dream is officially dead.
I have some thoughts.
My take on the Carson Cooper situation
While I didn’t love the NCAA president’s quote about “if you’re used up your eligibility, then you’ve used it up” regarding the current senior class missing out on the proposed five-year window, I do believe that the board that votes on this issue will be able to form their own opinions on grandfathering in current seniors.
The NCAA is often not about being “fair” but rather making money, and I think that if it wants to avoid the headache of an influx of lawsuits and filed waivers this summer, it’ll want to grandfather in these seniors to avoid legal fees and, honestly, some of these guys will increase revenue for the NCAA.
Baker might want the vote to be against grandfathering in current seniors, but I don’t think it would be in the NCAA’s best interest to do that. It would lead to plenty of legal battles.
Is all hope lost on Cooper’s return? I don’t think so. I doubt he would even mention it as a possibility during a LockedOn Spartans podcast with Matt Sheehan if he wasn’t truly interested. I’d be willing to bet that he’s expecting to move on but if the NCAA does rule that current seniors could come back, he’ll be on the phone with Izzo immediately.
Izzo knows that Cooper could take the roster over the top and the senior big man probably realizes he’s a super late bloomer and one more year in the Hall of Famer’s system would give him a better shot at the NBA.
So, that’s my long answer about the Cooper fifth year hope. My short answer is no, all hope is not lost — yet.
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