The Northeast Conference is planning to remove its 45 football scholarship limit, according to CollegeAD. The NEC will allow as many as 105 scholarships as outlined in the NCAA v. House settlement but one athletic director told CollegeAD that most schools are unlikely to offer more than 50. The maximum number of scholarships currently allowed in the FCS is 63 and that number has not changed for the 2025-26 academic year as of this posting. The final roster and scholarship limits are still subject to change for the 2025 season.
Historically, the NEC did not allow football scholarships when it began sponsoring the sport in 1996 and allowed them beginning in the mid-2000s. Even after allowing scholarships, the NEC was one of the few FCS conferences that did not allow the FCS maximum scholarships along with the Patriot League. The Patriot League did not allow football scholarships until the 2013 season and removed the conference-imposed limit of 60 beginning with the 2024 season. Only two current FCS conferences – the Ivy League and Pioneer Football League – do not allow athletic scholarships. The Metro Atlantic Atheltic Conference (MAAC) did not allow football scholarships when it sponsored I-AA/FCS football from 1993 through 2007.
The Northeast Conference has 8 football members with Central Connecticut State, Duquesne, Long Island, Mercyhurst, Robert Morris, Saint Francis (PA), Stonehill, and Wagner. The duo of Stonehill and Mercyhurst are in a reclassification period from NCAA Division II to Division I and won’t be eligible for the FCS playoffs until 2026 and 2028, respectively.
Photo Credit to Northeast Conference
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