Oklahoma Sooners linebacker Owen Heinecke was granted a temporary injunction last week in Cleveland County Court that will allow him to be immediately eligible to suit up and play one more year of college football at OU in 2026. However, it looks like the NCAA will still fight back hard to keep Heinecke off the field and reverse Judge Thad Balkman's decision. According to On3 SoonerScoop's George Stoia III, "The NCAA is asking the Oklahoma Supreme Court (or appellate court) to reverse Heinecke’s injunction."
The NCAA filed on Friday, eight days after Heinecke was granted the right to play. The NCAA also filed during the same week as the NFL draft, which concludes on Saturday. Heinecke is no longer a draft-eligible player, as he's coming back to OU, but if Balkman's ruling does end up being overturned, it puts Heinecke in a bad spot, as the draft will have already come and gone without him even being in the pool of players who can be selected.The appeal from the NCAA was an expected move, and it begins more legal proceedings.
The NCAA will file arguments saying that the injunction was not right, then Heinecke’s legal counsel will respond (they have 30 days to do so), defending the ruling. After that, the appellate court will decide whether to uphold or overturn the ruling.The Oklahoma Supreme Court is not obligated to take all appeals, just the ones it chooses to. Heinecke's situation is playing out in a similar matter to the case of Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss.
In that instance, the Mississippi Supreme Court threw out Chambliss' case, denying the NCAA's appeal.In the NCAA's appeal filings they claimed that, "the district court erroneously granted Mr. Heinecke his requested injunctive relief ... evidence at the hearing primarily addressed character and athletic skills-neither disputed - not his entitlement to mandatory relief."The NCAA also argues that Heinecke "did not establish by clear and convincing evidence that the NCAA's application of its Bylaws was arbitrary" and "failed to establish by clear and convincing evidence that he will suffer irreparable harm absent an injunction."Stoia also reports that until a decision is reversed, Heinecke, who is already listed on OU's official roster, is eligible to play.
Reversing the decision could take months, or even longer, and there is a chance that Heinecke's case doesn't even reach the Oklahoma Supreme Court until after football season is over. However, the NCAA has requested to put the case on a "fast track docket". Again, just like in Chambliss' situation, an appeal was expected, and Heinecke and the Sooners hope that his case continues to mirror Chambliss'.
While Heinecke won his eligibility last week, the NCAA is trying to do everything they can to get that decision overturned, and take the year back from him.Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes and opinions. You can also follow Aaron on X@Aaron_Gelvin.This article originally appeared on Sooners Wire: NCAA fighting to appeal Heinecke case to Oklahoma Supreme Court