He signed on to play football this fall at the University of Pittsburgh, but the NCAA recently declared him academically ineligible for the Pitt team because of a software-based program he used in high school.

In an age where more and more high school course offerings extend beyond the traditional classroom, the NCAA has been taking a close look at whether such courses — online, virtual, independent study, correspondence and software-based credit recovery — meet its standards.

This month, the NCAA initiated a new policy — approved in January — outlining how to determine if “nontraditional” courses meet NCAA standards. The new policy applies to courses completed after Aug. 1.

To be eligible to participate in Division I sports in the first year of college, the NCAA requires students to complete 16 core courses in high school, including four years of English, three years of math and two years of science, among others.

Under the new policy, the NCAA states that nontraditional courses must meet these conditions:

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