Bevo’s Daily Roundup: Spring sports athletes to receive extra season of eligibility, NCAA says

On Monday, NCAA officials approved a one-year extension for the eligibility for all spring sports athletes whose season was affected by cancellations due to the current pandemic.

More on this from the Austin American-Statesman: “Those cancellations led to the question of whether this would become a wasted year for athletes. Typically, NCAA athletes are allowed to compete in four seasons during a five-year window. With the ruling, the NCAA will allow ‘schools to self-apply waivers to restore one of those seasons of competition for student-athletes who had competed while eligible in the COVID-19-shortened 2020 spring season.’ The athletes most impacted by the decision are seniors whose careers had hung in the balance. An All-American pitcher, [Miranda] Elish had already stated that she would return to Texas if allowed by the NCAA. ... Texas did not immediately make athletic director Chris Del Conte, baseball coach David Pierce or softball coach Mike White available for comment on Monday.” Del Conte previously stated his agreement with such a move.”

WHAT THE WISE MEN ARE SAYING ABOUT THE LONGHORNS

Austin American-Statesman: Bohls: Crisis spawns a new, more relaxed, compassionate Tom Herman

Austin American-Statesman: Texas’ Tom Herman: ‘Today is the first day of the new normal for us’

Austin American-Statesman: The Dotted Line: A closer look at the top five prospects on the 2021 Fabuous 55

Dallas Morning News: Texas coach Tom Herman voices concern over level playing field, discusses ‘Tiger King’ in teleconference

Dallas Morning News: Dealing with the Longhorns’ new normal, Tom Herman’s priority is taking care of his team, figuring out the football part later

Dallas Morning News: Texas Longhorns prospects who are most likely to be selected in the 2020 NFL Draft

247Sports: Four-star linebacker Aaron Willis intrigued by Texas offer

NEWS FROM ELSEWHERE IN LONGHORN LAND AND THE BIG 12

• Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby gave an hour-long teleconference last week, leaving on the table the chance that the 2020 college football season will be played in stadiums without fans, according to Sports Illustrated. “It’s hard to imagine looking up to a grandstand and seeing people sitting six feet apart,” Bowlsby reportedly said. “I think there will probably be lots of people that give consideration to what kind of public assembly they want to do. … I do think it will cause people to take pause and wonder what kinds of things they’re sharing other than enthusiasm for a game and enthusiasm for a school or a team when they go into the stadium. ... I suppose it’s possible that we can return to some form of competition before we got to the point where we were comfortable with public assembly, and we can end up with what we thought we might end up with in basketball and that is playing in front of no crowd. On the one hand, that allows you to watch it on television, but the environment would certainly be far poorer as a result of not having an enthusiastic crowd in the stands.” But let’s be clear, there’s still much that remains unknown.

• An update on quarterback Sam Ehlinger’s injury via Herman’s press conference yesterday, from Burnt Orange Nation’s previous report: “The most high-profile player on the injury report is senior quarterback Sam Ehlinger, who didn’t throw during the last several weeks of winter conditioning due to a rib injury that he suffered during the middle of last season. The strength and conditioning staff also modified his workouts to include less heavy lifting after he aggravated the injury. Last fall, Ehlinger didn’t miss any playing time as a result of the injury, but the decline of his play following the first four games provides some evidence that it did impact him on the field. As part of his rehabilitation, Ehlinger had a Zoom meeting with a physician last week and is improving, but Herman said that a full recovery will be apparent when Ehlinger’s rib stops hurting.”

• Glad to see Texas linebacker Cort Jaquess is keeping himself busy during quarantine.

• BetOnline released their odds for who wins their college football conference in 2020. It’s good news from the Longhorns, who have a 3/2 chance, behind only the Oklahoma Sooners, who currently boast a 4/5 chance of taking home the Big 12 trophy this year.