The aftermath of a major court ruling has enabled a UNLV football player in the middle of his own federal case to return to the field.

UNLV defensive lineman Cohen Fuller will be allowed to continue playing for at least one more season following a Colorado ruling on NCAA eligibility, a federal judge in Las Vegas said Monday.

In a case that joined a wave of similar lawsuits filed by more than a hundred athletes over the past two years, Fuller had sued the NCAA in June, seeking to play in the 2026-27 season after the NCAA said he had exhausted his eligibility.

The courts have continued to reshape college sports in the revenue-sharing era. In a Friday decision, Denver U.S. District Judge Charlotte Sweeney ruled that players who graduated from high school in 2022 and ran out of playing time under NCAA eligibility rules could compete in a fifth season. Before the ruling, the NCAA had approved new eligibility rules that allow five seasons of competition over a five-year period that were not set to be in place until next fall.

Nevada Chief U.S. District Judge Andrew Gordon said in a Monday afternoon hearing that because of that decision, Fuller would be able to continue playing during the current season.

“He’s got what he wants,” the judge said.

After court, Fuller’s attorney Geoffrey Tabor said his client intends to stay at UNLV for the full upcoming season.

Though there is still a possibility that a future appellate ruling overturning the Colorado decision disrupts his season, keeping Fuller could help UNLV as the team competes for a lucrative College Football Playoff spot. He had nine solo tackles and 18 assisted tackles last season, along with 3.5 tackles for loss, two sacks, and one pass breakup.

“According to the courts, he’s eligible,” head coach Dan Mullen said Sunday after Fuller resumed practicing. “He’s been working and waiting for that. Listen, it’s the right thing to do.”

Mullen also said there’s a chance UNLV will bring back similarly situated former players from the high school class of 2022, like defensive back Laterrance Welch or linebacker Donovan Spellman.

Monday’s hearing was supposed to address Fuller’s motion for a temporary restraining order prohibiting the NCAA from declaring him ineligible for the 2026-27 and 2027-28 seasons.

But at the outset, Gordon questioned whether the hearing was moot in light of the new ruling.

Tabor said no, because despite his client belonging to the Colorado class, his eligibility could still change if the Colorado decision is reversed by an appellate court.

The NCAA has already filed a notice that it is appealing Sweeney’s ruling.

Should a reversal occur in the middle of the season, Fuller would be in a “significant bind,” harming him and UNLV football, the attorney told the judge.

Gordon pointed out that the suit had already been delayed.

Fuller initially filed suit in January, representing himself, but did not pay the filing fee or submit a formal complaint. That case was procedurally dismissed, and he refiled the current one in June.

Tabor said after court that attorneys filed the current case as quickly as they could once they were retained.

The judge acknowledged the prior lawsuit and indicated that Fuller had been trying to negotiate with the NCAA, but, he said, “Your delay doesn’t create my emergency, as the courts always like to say.”

Gordon also said his initial inclination was to deny Fuller’s request for a restraining order, not because of the merits of it, but because he had not seen enough evidence. He added that the NCAA’s position also had some holes.

Such a denial, he said, could create problems by making Fuller more dependent on the outcome of the Colorado case, whereas delaying a ruling would preserve an avenue of litigation for the player and allow attorneys to fix the issues he observed.

“Because Wisne (the Colorado case name) has granted him what he’s seeking, do you want to open Pandora’s box?” the judge asked.

After taking a break and conferring with attorneys, Tabor said Fuller had decided not to move forward with the hearing.

NCAA attorney Ben Kappelman did not object and Gordon said he would consider the restraining order request to be withdrawn.

The judge indicated that litigation would proceed on whether Fuller can play another season following this one.

Fuller has also played for Coastal Carolina, El Camino College (California) and Graceland University (Iowa).

Tabor and attorney Tim O’Reilly, a UNLV Football Foundation board member and past football player himself, filed their challenge based in part on the fact that Fuller had spent a season at the junior college level and another at the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics level.

In a statement Friday, NCAA President Charlie Baker urged Congress to intervene.

”Without targeted intervention from Congress, college sports cannot set nationwide rules everyone can play by and without Congress, failed professionals will continue to use college sports as a fallback option — robbing the next class of young athletes of college scholarships,” he said, referring to the Protect College Sports Act, a bill regulating college sports compensation and transfers.

He added: “Today’s rulings and the chaos they bring to college sports are exactly why it’s time to pass this bill.”

Kappelman declined to comment after the hearing, saying that he would provide a reporter’s contact information to the NCAA, which provided no additional comment.

Tabor said his side plans to supplement economic expert evidence, addressing one of the areas where Gordon wanted more information.

The attorney anticipates that the broader eligibility issue may eventually end up in front of the U.S. Supreme Court.

For now, he said, “We will be monitoring the Wisne decision closely, along with thousands of other people across the country and we’ll be ready to move forward.”

The Associated Press, Review-Journal assistant sports editor Diamond Leung and Review-Journal sports columnist Ed Graney contributed to this report. Contact Noble Brigham at nbrigham@reviewjournal.com.