UNC wide receiver Tez Walker’s eligibility fight has finally come to an end.

The transfer from Kent State, who was denied eligibility for the 2023 season as a two-time transfer (he originally enrolled at NC Central), had his succeeding appeal denied as well following a meeting with an independent committee on Thursday. He will be ineligible for the rest of the 2023 season. UNC head coach Mack Brown announced the news on social media that afternoon.

“I don’t know that I’ve ever been more disappointed in a person, a group of people, or an institution than I am with the NCAA right now,” Brown said. “It’s clear that the NCAA is about process and it couldn’t care less about the young people it’s supposed to be supporting. Plain and simple, the NCAA has failed Tez and his family and I’ve lost all faith in its ability to lead and govern our sport.”

Though he did enroll at NC Central before the 2020 season, Walker never played a snap for the Eagles due to the FCS cancelling its 2020 season amid the COVID pandemic. Walker eventually transferred to Kent State, where he starred in two seasons for the Golden Flashes before entering the portal once again after the 2022 season.

Once Walker enrolled at UNC, the NCAA tightened up rules surrounding multiple-time transfers, meaning Walker would not be eligible to play for the Tar Heels until 2024. Carolina’s challenge of the ruling centered on several factors: Walker never played for NC Central, the more restrictive transfer rules weren’t published until after Walker enrolled in Chapel Hill, and his transfer should have been granted a mental health waiver due to Walker wanting to be closer to his ailing grandmother, who lives in Charlotte.

“The decision makers at the NCAA and on the committee should be ashamed of themselves for doing this to a young man,” Brown said. “As has been clearly documented, Tez should be eligible for a number of reasons, not the least of which is the mental health issues he’s faced during his time in college. And with this decision, the NCAA has placed an unnecessary burden on him.”

UNC athletic director Bubba Cunningham also released a statement, calling the NCAA’s decision “maddening, frustrating and wrong.”

Walker had been named a preseason first team All-ACC honoree and a member of the Biletnikoff Award watch list. Both were announced before Walker’s eligibility was initially denied.

“Despite this setback, Tez’s future remains bright,” Brown said, “and we’ll continue to do everything we can to help him fulfill all of his dreams. Shame on you, NCAA.”

 

Featured image via UNC Athletic Communications

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