Former Tennessee star Zakai Zeigler sues NCAA over new five-season eligibility rule

Zakai Zeigler's lawyers have amended his lawsuit, arguing that the NCAA's recently adopted five-season rule shows the association had less restrictive options than its old four-season limit.

Attorneys for former Tennessee basketball player Zakai Zeigler filed an amended suit in U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Tennessee, leveraging the NCAA's June shift to a five-season, five-year eligibility model as evidence that the body had viable, less restrictive alternatives to its prior four-season rule. The filing argues the NCAA abandoned long-standing constraints in favor of a framework it once opposed. Zeigler, who withdrew his request for a fifth collegiate season on July 1, 2025, continues to pursue damages, asserting that a fifth year would have dramatically increased his name-image-likeness earnings, estimated at $2-4 million.

He was undrafted in 2025, played in France last season, and is set to compete in Germany. The lawsuit, which could seek as much as $12 million, also notes the NCAA’s plan to merge related eligibility cases in the Middle District of Tennessee. The NCAA has not commented on the amended filing.