The NCAA Division I Council finally did right by student-athletes in its most lucrative sport, college football, when the council handed down an edict that all we mere fan-like-peasants might rejoice in.

Beginning this season, college football players can play up to four games without burning their redshirt year. Miami athletic director Blake James heads the council and gave his assessment of what the new redshirt rule means for the sport.

“This change promotes not only fairness for college athletes, but also their health and well-being. Redshirt football student-athletes are more likely to remain engaged with the team, and starters will be less likely to feel pressure to play through injuries,” James said in a release. “Coaches will appreciate the additional flexibility and ability to give younger players an opportunity to participate in limited competition.”

That means every fan of a major college football team will probably see more true freshmen playing this season than ever before. While this is great for players, it might turn Georgia’s 2018 season-opener against Austin Peay into rather expensive spring game.

This redshirt rule might be perceived as taking a recruiting chip off the table for many coaches. An offer of early playing time won't mean much to recruits considering the fact that they’ll all almost assuredly play at least four games. But most coaches play their best players anyway, and that’s how I’d sell this to them.

Now conferences might set limitations on how this is played out. Hypothetically, for example, players may only be eligible during non-conference play and the bowl game. The Big 12 might say you can play any freshman you want against Florida Atlantic, UCLA and Army, Oklahoma. But against Iowa State you’re gonna have to make a decision.

I can’t see any conference telling coaches that playing a true freshman during a bowl game will result in penalizing that player by burning his redshirt. 

Needless to say, the rule cannot be reinforced retroactively, which is bad news for someone like Michigan transfer Shea Patterson, who would likely have had another season of eligibility left after playing just three games as a freshman following Ole Miss quarterback Chad Kelly's knee injury. 

Patterson, though, is exactly the kind of player this rule is meant to help in the future. And, for that, we can all agree that this was a major victory for players, coaches and fans, alike.

RJ Young is a former Oklahoma Sooners football and basketball beat writer, investigative journalist, essayist, novelist, and Ph.D student. His memoir "LET IT BANG" (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) hits shelves and earbuds in October. His YouTube channel is fire if you're into storytelling and topics ranging from Baker Mayfield to The Rock's early wrestling career to this one time when a guy got a little too interested in RJ's "Black Panther" cup at a urinal inside of a movie theater.