West Virginia high school student-athlete rules are changing to limit transfer eligibility again

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. - Transfer rules are changing again, leaving athletes with fewer chances to go to bigger schools where they can compete at a higher level and prepare for the collegiate level. 

Baseball player Bryson McNew is an example of how things worked under the previous rules. He transferred to Morgantown High School from Preston County High School.

“Getting somewhere where I can have the ability to play at a higher competition level, around better players and get more prepared to play at the next level, and also have a shot to win a state title, something that I wouldn’t have had at the school I was previously at,” he said.

Because he transferred before the ruling changed, McNew remains eligible for his senior year at his new school; however, that will no longer be the case starting this school year for high school students going forward. 

The West Virginia Legislature passed House Bill 4425, which went into effect on June 29. It repealed a section of West Virginia code that gave students freedom to transfer schools without losing athletic eligibility.

According to John Bowers, Morgantown High School athletic director and assistant principal, although the original law gave students the ability to seek better opportunities, it hurt the schools they left, leaving a big gap in competitive play that this new ruling is trying to close. 

Now, House Bill 4425 gives the West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission the power to change the ruling for all high school students. 

“It took the legislature out of micromanaging high school athletics,” Delegate Marty Gearhart, R-Mercer, said.

The new WVSSAC ruling will allow underclassmen – freshmen and sophomores – to transfer one time in their high school career until Sept. 1 of that year. Underclassmen and juniors will be permitted one transfer back to their original school, but juniors and seniors will lose a year of eligibility if they transfer under any circumstance. 

According to Gearhart, this rule aims to level the playing field among schools and bridge the gap the previous rules widened. 

“The rule taught all of the things that we don’t want to convey in high school athletics,” he said. 

According to The Parkersburg News and Sentinel, last fall, 44% of high school football games ended in a mercy rule. This is a 13% increase from 2018. 

A mercy rule happens when a team has a 40-point lead; the clock does not stop for the entire second quarter as long as they maintain that lead, unless they go out of bounds. The percentage of games ending in a mercy rule has steadily increased during the past four years, especially since the 2023 change to state transfer rules.

To many people, like Gearhart, high school sports are meant to be for learning fundamental skills, not just as a stepping stone to a championship or collegiate resume-builder. 

Gearhart says it’s to make memories and grow with the same people they’ve played with since they were kids. It’s about growing together as the journey goes on.

“Sports in high school are not training for professional sports; they’re training for life,” he said.

This ruling will help encourage athletes to focus on the fundamentals of the game, not just winning, he said. 

According to Bowers, high school sports are an important part of not only the students' lives, but also the community that has supported these athletes for years. 

Bowers said he thinks this new ruling will allow the community to support the same kids they have for years, and it will encourage growth in all high school sports programs. 

“This will force players to have some loyalty, players to have some gumption to stick and stay in their community schools and help them grow those programs,” he said. 

The ruling isn’t set in stone, and the WVSSAC could always change it to fit the best needs for students, parents, coaches and the rest of the community, but for now, upperclassmen like McNew will have to make the best of what they get at their current schools.

Quinn Robie contributed to this report.