Pair of Arizona football players cleared for competition following push for eligibility

Arizona Wildcats running back Ismail Mahdi and linebacker Max Harris have been cleared for competition and will travel with the team to face No. 15 BYU, according to ESPN’s Pete Thamel.

The addition of the Wildcats’ leading rusher and third-leading tackler from a year ago to the 2026 roster is a formality after they were granted a temporary restraining order, which was the next step toward returning to play for Arizona this season, on Wednesday.

The order will be effective once a bond of $1,000 is paid, per the Arizona Daily Star. There will be a hearing on Sept. 21 at the Pima County Superior Court, which will have the NCAA make a case for the why the temporary relief should not be granted.

Similar cases have been popping up across the country after a court in Colorado paused the preliminary injunction that allowed players from the 2022 recruiting class to play as five-for-five players, requiring further action from those players in order to play despite the five-for-five rule letting student-athletes use up their eligibility over five years.

No. 6 Indiana retained two of its starting defensive linemen after Stephen Daley and Kellan Wyatt were granted temporary restraining orders just in time for the season opener.

The most notable instance has been LSU pursuing two fifth-year players that had previously signed with NFL teams as undrafted free agents. After plenty of controversy, however, the Tigers did not add either player to the roster. Regardless, the SEC filed a lawsuit against LSU and planned to meet on Thursday to “decide whether to terminate” LSU from the SEC.

Mahdi and Harris both have been practicing with the Wildcats but did not play in Arizona’s opening win on Saturday against Northern Arizona. Mahdi was Arizona’s leading rusher in 2025 while Harris finished third in tackles.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

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