In an astonishing decision, the NCAA denied middle linebacker Brashton Satele's request for a medical exemption that would have allowed him to play as a sixth-year senior in 2010.

"I'm shocked," Satele said. "I thought I was coming back (to UH) for sure."

The NCAA ruled that Satele needed to prove he missed two seasons because of injuries. Satele had enough documentation for the 2009 season, but not enough for the 2005 season. Lee Ann Satele said the NCAA told them while they had documentation, it was postdated, and not actually from 2005. She said data was not collected at the time in 2005 because "nobody saw it would put us in this situation" several years later.

"We're all bummed," she said. "We gave it our best shot. But they wanted more information."

UH compliance officer Amanda Paterson said she was "disappointed" in the outcome, saying, "I thought we put on a strong case." But the lack of "contemporaneous documentation" — notes written in 2005 from doctors and physical therapists — hurt the appeal.

Satele is now available to be signed by the NFL. The draft is next week, and qualified players may be signed to free-agent contracts after that.

Right tackle Laupepa Letuli still is awaiting word on his appeal for a sixth year.

Paterson, who was named interim compliance officer in 2008, said that, during orientation meetings, student-athletes are instructed to collect contemporaneous documentation whenever they suffer an injury.