Lawyers working on the $2.8 billion NCAA deal suggested a big change on Wednesday about team sizes. They proposed that athletes who lost their spots could play without being counted in the new limits, as long as they are still eligible.

Lawyers suggested that schools should make lists of all the players they did not choose for teams. They were told to do this by the court because a settlement might be approved soon. This list could include hundreds of players, maybe even more.

These students, called "Designated Student-Athletes" in the new legal document, can be invited back to try for a spot on the team, but it's not certain they will get one, or they can go to new schools.

Either way, these athletes won't count towards the new team size rules that were announced last fall and first approved by Judge Claudia Wilken in October.

The plan would also help high school athletes who were promised spots but then had them taken away. This help would last as long as those players can play in college.

Wilken has agreed to the main parts of the deal. This deal will let each school give up to $20.5 million each year to their athletes. It also includes over $2.7 billion in past payments for players. These players said the NCAA and five biggest conferences unfairly stopped them from earning money from their name, image, and likeness.

The latest proposal finished a two-week effort after Wilken told the lawyers for both sides to talk again. He said the details about the number of players in the plan were not acceptable.

The plan wants to change the rules about scholarships in college sports. Now, there are limits on how many scholarships a team can give, like 85 for football. The new plan will limit the number of players on a team instead, like 105 for football. A school could give scholarships to all players, but this would cost a lot. Many people think that because it's expensive, players who don't get full scholarships or any scholarships won't be on the team.

Wilken felt sorry for the many players who lost their places on school sports teams because of a new agreement. About twelve of them shared their experiences at a meeting on April 7th.

Wilken asked the lawyers to change that part of the agreement. When the NCAA said no, he told them to do it anyway or the whole plan would be in danger.

The lawyers for the people who sued said they improved on Wilken's idea. They made it possible for schools to take back players they had cut without it affecting their limit, and they also made this possible for a new school.

The plaintiffs believe these changes to the agreement offer more protection than the court requested, according to their court document.

The lawyers said they cannot promise the athletes will get their places on the team again.

The defendants argued that the changes to the agreement meant schools could still decide which athletes to include, which was already true. They wrote that the changes ensure athletes who lost their place because of the new limits will be in the same situation as if the limits had not been introduced. This means the limits do not affect them.

The judge will probably give people who are against the plan a short time to send in new complaints before she makes her final decision. Steve Berman, one of the main lawyers for the people who sued, said earlier this week that those who are against the plan likely won't be happy with the new idea.

Time is running out for the NCAA and its 1,200 schools with over 500,000 athletes.