Expert: Vic Winnek - 1/29/2008

Question
QUESTION: hello, i was wondering, like our young canadian friend, the exact rules for wearing a visor in division 3 football (Benedictine University)

ANSWER: Devin
You may wear a clear non tinted visor/eye shield under NCAA rules. The NCAA football playing rules are applicable to all divisions (1, II, III & NAIA with the exception of replay rules).  The exact rule addressing visors is :

NCAA FOOTBALL RULE 1-4-5  (SEE 1-4-5-s)

Illegal Equipment
ARTICLE 5. No player wearing illegal equipment shall be permitted to play. Any question as to the legality of a player’s equipment shall be decided by the umpire. Illegal equipment includes the following:
...
s. Eye shields that are not clear or made from molded or rigid material. Note: No player wearing illegal equipment shall be permitted to play. If illegal equipment is discovered by an official, the team shall be charged a team timeout.

Hope this answers your question
NCAA Football Official

The NCAA issued a memo based on the recommendation of the National Athletic Trainers Association to prohibit eye shield that had any tint.  It must be 100% tint/color free to qualify as "clear".


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: just to clarify, u said that applies to all divisions, but i have a picture on my wall of marshawn lynch stiff arming some guy from oregon into the ground... anyway the guy from oregon getting dropped has a black visor. How/why?

Answer
Devin

Yes the rule applies to all divisions of NCAA Football.  I believe the photo you refer to was taken in 2005.  The rule at that time allowed tinting to a visor if there was a doctor's prescription for a tinted visor and the NCAA had approved the prescription.  The rule has changed.  In 2006 and 2007 No tinting was permitted.  A doctor's note or prescription would not make a tinted visor acceptable equipment.  The reason for prohibiting a tinted visor came from the recommendation from the sports medicine community to the NCAA to make any tinting of a visor/eye shield illegal equipment.  The rationale is that medical personnel can not make a proper or accurate assessment of head injuries & eye injuries when viewing the pupils reactivity to light through a tinted eye shield.  Further a tinted eyeshield would need to be removed to assess a concussion or head injury and the risk to the cervical spine or brain in removing the eyeshield is too great a risk.  The medical community argues that the benefit of a clear eyeshield to protect the eyes and face is proper and a benefit to player's safety but the tinting creates a problem in the evaluation of eye and head injuries and therefore recommends the eyeshield / visor be permitted as legal equipment but a tinted one be deemed illegal equipment.  The medical community advised the NCAA rules committee that if tinting is required for a medical condition then the therapeutic remedy could be achieved by dark or tinted glasses, goggles or contact lens thus making the need for a tinted visor un necessary.  The medical community further argued that it could safely and easily remove glasses, contact lens or goggles without jeopardizing or compromising a spinal or brain injury.

To answer your original question tinted visors are not permitted by rule.  The poster you refer to pre-dated the strict prohibition.