Robbie Avila is on the move again, and this time the destination is TCU.
The bespectacled big man who turned into one of college basketball’s most recognizable players at Saint Louis - after first starring for Josh Schertz at Indiana State - is expected to enroll at TCU in the coming days, sources told Sports Illustrated. 247Sports’ Jon Rothstein first reported the development. Avila is among the many high-profile players who have sued the NCAA over its age-based eligibility rollout and received a permanent injunction in Missouri state court last week.
His path back to college basketball has been messy for months. Avila initially filed suit in Illinois, but a judge ruled in early September that the court did not have personal jurisdiction to decide the case.
He then enrolled at Saint Louis for the fall semester and filed a new lawsuit in Missouri, which eventually led to last week’s injunction. Complicating matters further, Avila also asked a judge to let him get around the sport’s roster limit, and Saint Louis already had 15 players before adding him.
That request was granted against the NCAA, but his return to the Billikens hit another wall Friday afternoon. The College Sports Commission, which enforces the House vs. NCAA Settlement, said it was blocking Avila’s return to SLU.
“While we take no position on Mr. Avila’s eligibility, we cannot effectuate a state court order that requires us to violate the explicit terms of a federal injunctive relief settlement by giving Saint Louis University an additional roster slot,” the CSC announced in a statement.
“Mr. Avila may be eligible to play college basketball this season, but there is no roster slot available for him at Saint Louis University.”
Saint Louis and Avila could have challenged that ruling, but TCU quickly surfaced as the cleaner option. Sources said the Horned Frogs also offer a potential payday of around $1 million, and Avila chose to leave Saint Louis and is expected to play this season in Fort Worth.
The biggest question now is timing. TCU has four four-week academic terms during the fall along with the main 15-week semester, and the final four-week term starts Monday, November 16.
If Avila can get into enough classes to qualify by then, he could debut as soon as November 19 against Texas A&M. TCU then heads into the Players Era 16 tournament the following week, and the Horned Frogs would love to have him available for that stretch.
If he misses that window, he likely would have to wait until the fall semester ends and wouldn’t be eligible until closer to Big 12 play.
TCU is 3-0 to start the season, though it needed double overtime to get past Louisiana-Monroe earlier this week. Once eligible, Avila could slide in as a starter alongside Xavier Edmonds.
How that actually works is another matter. Avila’s game has always been unusual, and Schertz built an offense around him as a “hub,” using his passing to create easy looks for Saint Louis guards cutting around him.
TCU probably won’t be able to rebuild its offense around him on the fly, which means he’ll need to adapt to a more traditional role. Even so, he shot 40% from three last season and remains effective in the low post, so the Horned Frogs should get an offensive boost whenever he’s finally cleared to suit up.
In Other News...
TCU Just Landed A Frontcourt Answer Jamie Dixon Really Needed
TCU has found a timely frontcourt boost in Robbie Avila, the reigning A-10 Player of the Year from Saint Louis University, who is set to transfer to the Horned Frogs after being blocked from playing for the Billikens because of roster limits. The move gives Jamie Dixon a much-needed answer inside, and it comes with a built-in advantage for TCU, which has a roster exemption that lets the program add Avila without running into the 15-player cap.
Avilas path to Fort Worth has been shaped by more than just roster math. A preliminary injunction opened the door for him to pursue a fifth year of eligibility, and that makes his arrival especially valuable for a TCU team looking to address a clear positional need. For Dixon, it is the kind of addition that can change the feel of a frontcourt quickly, even if the full impact of the move will only become clear once Avila gets on the floor. [Read more 🡒]
TCUs Surprise Robbie Avila Move Could Reshape The Big 12 Race
Robbie Avilas next stop appears to be Fort Worth, with the former Indiana State and Saint Louis standout reportedly finalizing a deal to play for TCU in the 2026-27 season. The move comes after Avila was granted an injunction allowing him to play a fifth year, even though he could not be added back to the Saint Louis roster because of a prior settlement agreement.
For TCU, the fit is easy to understand. Avila would bring frontcourt depth and a different kind of offensive presence to a roster that could use both, especially in a Big 12 that rarely gives teams much margin for error. The question is how quickly he can adjust to a higher level of competition, but if the transition goes smoothly, this could be the kind of addition that quietly changes the Frogs outlook. [Read more 🡒]
TCU Let Another Cathartic Win Slip Away Under Sonny Dykes
TCU has been living through a string of losses that have cut deeper than the usual bumps of a college football season, and the frustration around Sonny Dykes tenure has only grown with each one. The Horned Frogs have taken their share of bruises against Colorado, SMU, Arizona State, Kansas State and Georgia, a run of defeats that has left fans alternating between anger and exhaustion while the program keeps trying to push forward.
The latest gut punch came against Arizona, where TCU played well enough to feel like it had a cathartic win in hand before letting it slip late. Those are the kinds of losses that linger, because they do not just show up in the standings, they hang over everything else, from the way the team is judged to the way every future close game is viewed. [Read more 🡒]