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With NCAA waiver approved, former Tide recruit can go on scholarship

Tired of all of the arrests and court cases and the like in college football? Here’s a pretty cool story to lift you spirits.

Elisha Shaw was a three-star defensive tackle in the Class of 2014 who held a scholarship offer from, among others, Alabama and had planned on signing with the Tide this past February. Unfortunately, a serious neck injury forced him to quit football and give up his dream of playing for Nick Saban.

In a classy gesture, UA decided to honor its scholarship commitment to Shaw. However, if they did that, NCAA rules stipulate that Shaw would count against the football program’s 85-man scholarship limit even if he didn’t play a single down.

Fortunately for all involved, common sense prevailed as the NCAA recently approved the Tide’s request for a waiver. In essence, Shaw will be on a non-football scholarship that will not count against the Tide’s 85-man limit.

Shaw addressed the development on his Twitter account Monday:

Bravo to the NCAA for proving his has some (miniscule) semblance of a heart and/or brain. And kudos to Saban and the Tide for doing the classy thing in the first place by honoring the young man’s scholarship offer.

(Photo credit: Rivals.com)