No, I'm just making it up. Either that, or it's an NCAA rule, smart guy.
"after two years, a school can give an athletic scholarship to a walk-on without counting the scholarship against the limit of 25 initial counters, and instead count the scholarship against only the limit of 85 overall counters."
A kid on a track scholarship is not a walk on, I don't believe. As soon as he plays football, his scholarship counts over to fb.
Yes, a kid on a track scholarship can be considered a walk-on.
The issue is whether he is RECRUITED, and that is the only area where we might have to walk a fine line.
Burns was, at one point, a football verbal. But he was also the younger brother of a player, and he never went through any of the formal recruiting processes (i.e., official visits, coach contact, home visits, etc.). Finally, Burns has publicly announced that he is pursuing track.
So you have interesting questions. The kid who is transferring in from USF signed a FOOTBALL LoI with USF, but a Track LoI with UM. Would HE be considered a "football recruit" if he chooses to go out for football in a few years? UM never recruited him.
What about that kid who was offered a USC football scholarship in middle school? Is he permanently a football recruit who could never play football if he excels in something besides football?
Sam Darnold's grandfather was a champion volleyball player at USC, and that was Darnold's specialty before he started playing football. Darnold sent USC his football videos, since USC wasn't actively recruiting him for football. Fortunately, a scholarship opened up when someone left USC early.
Jimmy Graham was a football walk-on. He was never recruited for football at UM, though he had previously played that sport in HS.
I could go on, but I am confident that the Athletic Department will build a solid case if any track guys ever want to come out for football (as that other kid was considering earlier in the year).
Again, the issue is whether the scholarship that is ALREADY AWARDED will convert over to football. And just because a kid has a track scholarship does not mean that he CAN'T walk on to any other sport he chooses. The issue is whether the track scholarship converts to another sport for purposes of the IC rules and the overall cap on scholarships.