Division I roster limits, explained
From July 1, 2025, Division I programs at schools that opted into the House v. NCAA settlement have a roster cap per sport instead of a scholarship cap. Any player on the roster may be on scholarship; nobody beyond the cap may be on the team.
The caps
| Sport | Roster cap | Programs over it last season | D-I programs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Women's Soccer | 28 | 261 | 346 |
| Baseball | 34 | 279 | 306 |
| Men's Basketball | 15 | 221 | 362 |
| Women's Basketball | 15 | 145 | 360 |
| Women's Beach Volleyball | 19 | 24 | 68 |
| Men's Cross Country | 17 | 11 | 314 |
| Women's Cross Country | 17 | 14 | 346 |
| Field Hockey | 27 | 12 | 79 |
| Football | 105 | 230 | 261 |
| Men's Golf | 9 | 161 | 303 |
| Women's Golf | 9 | 55 | 279 |
| Women's Gymnastics | 20 | 23 | 60 |
| Men's Ice Hockey | 26 | 51 | 60 |
| Women's Ice Hockey | 26 | 10 | 39 |
| Men's Lacrosse | 48 | 54 | 77 |
| Women's Lacrosse | 38 | 29 | 130 |
| Women's Rowing | 68 | 21 | 93 |
| Men's Soccer | 28 | 167 | 213 |
| Softball | 25 | 65 | 305 |
| Men's Swimming & Diving | 30 | 52 | 134 |
| Women's Swimming & Diving | 30 | 92 | 197 |
| Men's Tennis | 10 | 78 | 232 |
| Women's Tennis | 10 | 54 | 301 |
| Men's Track & Field | 45 | 263 | 299 |
| Women's Track & Field | 45 | 315 | 348 |
| Men's Volleyball | 18 | 20 | 27 |
| Women's Volleyball | 18 | 157 | 344 |
| Men's Water Polo | 24 | 17 | 29 |
| Women's Water Polo | 24 | 12 | 36 |
| Men's Wrestling | 30 | 54 | 76 |
| Women's Wrestling | 30 | 1 | 4 |
What it means
- Grandfathering. Players already on a roster whose spot the cap would have cut were "designated" and do not count against it for the rest of their eligibility. That is why last season's rosters read over the cap on many pages; the squeeze lands on incoming classes.
- Walk-ons. With hard caps, unfunded roster spots are the ones that disappear first. Ask a coach directly whether a walk-on spot exists for your class.
- Scholarships. No cap on how many players are funded — but no requirement either. A program may fund 4 or 24 of 28; the aid totals on each school's cost page show what the department spends across all its teams.
- Who is bound. Schools in the Power conferences and every other school that opted in; a few Division I schools did not. Division II and III keep their previous rules.
Source: NCAA Division I Board of Directors, June 2025; verified 2026-09-16.