sport redshirt 
Walter Byers ( March 13 , 1922  May 26 , 2015 ) was the first executive director of the ___MASK28___ . He served from 1951 to 1988 . He also helped start the United States ___MASK5___ Writers Association in 1956 . The NCAA Walter Byers Scholarship is named in his honor . An athletic scholarship is a form of scholarship to attend a college or university or a private high school awarded to an individual based predominantly on his or her ability to play in a ___MASK69___ . Athletic scholarships are common in the United States , but in many countries they are rare or non - existent . Redshirt , in United States college athletics , is a delay or suspension of an athlete ' s participation in order to lengthen his period of eligibility . Typically , a student ' s athletic eligibility in a given ___MASK69___ is four seasons , a number derived from the four years of academic classes that are normally required to obtain a bachelor ' s degree at an American college or university . However , in a redshirt year , student athletes may attend classes at the college or university , practice with an athletic team , and dress for play but may not compete in games . Using this mechanism , a student athlete has up to five academic years to use the four years of eligibility , thus becoming a fifth - year senior . The origin of the term redshirt was likely from Warren Alfson of the University of Nebraska who , in 1937 , asked to practice but not play and wore a Nebraska redshirt without a number . The term is used as a verb , noun , and adjective . For example , a coach may choose to redshirt a player who is then referred to as a redshirt , and a redshirt freshman refers to an athlete in the first year of eligibility . The ___MASK28___ ( NCAA ) is a non - profit association which regulates athletes of 1 , 281 institutions , conferences , organizations , and individuals . It also organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States and Canada , and helps more than 450 , 000 college student - athletes who compete annually in college sports . The organization is headquartered in Indianapolis , Indiana . In 2014 , the NCAA generated almost a billion dollars in revenue . 80 to 90 % of this revenue was due to the Men ' s Division I ___MASK5___ Tournament . This revenue is then distributed back into various organizations and institutions across the United States . A student athlete ( sometimes written student  athlete ) is a participant in an organized competitive ___MASK69___ sponsored by the educational institution in which he or she is enrolled . Student athletes must typically balance the roles of being a full - time student and a full - time athlete . Due to educational institutions being colleges , they offer athletic scholarships in various sports . Many student athletes are compensated with scholarships to attend these institutions but these scholarships are not mandatory to be considered a student athlete . In the United States , athletic scholarships are largely regulated by either the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics ( NAIA ) or the ___MASK28___ ( NCAA ), which sets minimum standards for both the individuals awarded the scholarships ( in terms of GPAs and standardized test scores ) and for the institutions granting them ( in terms of the form and value of the scholarships and the proportion of recipients who must ultimately earn degrees ). The term " student - athlete " was coined in 1964 by Walter Byers , the first - ever executive director of the NCAA , to counter attempts to require universities to pay workers ' compensation .