NCAA athletes no longer need school permission to transfer

The NCAA's Division I Council adopted a new rule today that change the way transfers take place:

Instead of a student-athlete asking for permission to transfer from his or her school, the student-athlete will now simply inform the school of his or her decision to transfer.

It removes the upper hand that schools have long held over student-athletes looking to transfer.

The NCAA will establish a national transfer database
The change, which formally goes into effect on Oct. 15, will require schools to enter a player’s name into a “national transfer database” after the school is informed of the athlete’s decision to transfer. The school must do so within two business days of being notified.

Also:

The NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Panel approved a rule in women’s basketball permitting padding to cover elbow, hand, finger, wrist or forearm guards, casts, or braces made of fiberglass, plaster, metal or another nonpliable substance. The items must be covered on all exterior sides and edges with a slow-rebounding foam of not less than a half-inch thickness.