The RaeQuan Battle waiver situation to get him immediately eligible for the 2023-2024 is still an ongoing process according to West Virginia interim head coach Josh Eilert.
“It’s still ongoing. It’s in their hands,” Eilert said. “There’s been some communication back and forth to get the information they need on some follow up issues. We’ve been getting that to them in a timely fashion and I look forward to getting an answer in the coming weeks.”
Battle spent last season at Montana State, averaging 17.7 points while shooting 46.9 percent from the field. He was named to All-Big Sky Conference First Team as well as the MVP of the conference tournament.
“RaeQuan’s special, he really is special. He’s probably our most natural athlete. He really scores the ball well, he can get his own shot,” Eilert said. “Defensively, he’d be one of those guys if you go back to the press Virginia days, he would fit right in because he’s so smooth and so athletic and so quick twitched compared to everyone else on that floor.”
Battle is applying to be a two-time transfer, something the NCAA said they are trying to crack down on.
“As a result of the DI Council vote, multiple-time transfers who cannot demonstrate and adequately document a personal need for medical or safety reasons to depart the previous school are not eligible to compete immediately following their second undergraduate transfer. National office staff, at the direction of NCAA members, have begun applying those criteria for multiple-time transfers for the 2023-24 academic year,” the NCAA said in a statement.
If the Mountaineers are able to get Battle to be eligible this season, Eilert says that significantly changes the direction for the team going forward.
“That waiver certainly looms over our head. That’s something I’m very concerned about. That would hurt our cause drastically because he is a special player,” Eilert said.
