One could argue that the most impactful event in the history of college sports was the cancellation of the 2020 season.
However, some programs and sports also lost the 2021 season as well. As we head into the 2025 season this spring, the reverberations of extra years granted to athletes who had their seasons stolen from them are still felt.
The Ivy League has been producing the most talent for other teams because of this extra year because players cannot stay at Ivy League programs and retain eligibility as graduate students. Patriot League players are under the same umbrella, but the latest trend had fallen to Division 3 standout players moving to Division 1 programs.
This offseason we have seen All-American caliber NESCAC players like Bowdoin’s Zack Goorno (Concord, Mass.), Ethan Barnard (Boxford, Mass.) and Will Byrne (Darien, Conn.) all defect to Big Ten programs -- Goorno to Maryland, Barnard to Rutgers and Byrne to Michigan.
