Tag: Tez Walker

NCAA responds to Mack Brown’s statement on Tez Walker

“Those comments directly contradict what…members and coaches called for vociferously – including UNC’s own football coach.”.

After North Carolina head coach Mack Brown released a lengthy statement condemning the NCAA for not approving wide receiver Tez Walker’s eligibility appeal, the organization responded Tuesday.

The statement from the DI Board said some committee members have received violent threats, but they stood behind the decision to not grant Walker eligibility for the 2023 season, saying athletes who transfer multiple times slow their progress toward a degree. They also said coaches wanted this policy.

“Those comments directly contradict what we and our fellow Division I members and coaches called for vociferously – including UNC’s own football coach,” the statement read.

Brown said the board should be “ashamed of themselves” in a statement after they denied Walker for the second time.

“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.

Walker previously attended North Carolina Central and Kent State, but he never played a down for the former. He cited mental health issues and a desire to be closer to his family in his transfer. The NCAA statement said the board consults a panel of licensed mental health experts for waiver requests with mental health stated as a factor.

Mack Brown releases update on Tez Walker, again

UNC football head coach Mack Brown sounded off on the NCAA’s decision to keep Tez Walker ineligible.

The North Carolina football program received the bad news on Thursday that wide receiver Tez Walker would not be eligible this season after his appeal was denied again. Following that decision, Mack Brown sounded off on the NCAA as did others to criticize the decision.

And the saga may not be over just yet.

On Monday, North Carolina’s Board of Trustees held an emergency meeting to get a legal update on the situation. Nothing appears imminent in terms of legal action but the Board of Trustees are doing their job and looking to provide support for Walker.

As is Brown who commented on the situation Monday night.

“I’ve never been prouder of Board of Trustee members than them saying, ‘Let’s all get together. Let’s figure out what his options are that we can present to him. Let’s make sure we’ve got one voice,'” Brown said via Inside Carolina. “There’s a lot of question marks that from a legal standpoint that we have to look at. He won’t play Saturday. I don’t think he’ll play for the rest of the year. But I don’t know that. I don’t know the legal ramifications. A lot of people are looking into that now.”

It’s a tough loss for the Tar Heels as Walker was projected to be their top receiver in the offense and a big target for Drake Maye.

But now, all the program can do is wait for the next steps.

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Social Media reactions to the NCAA Statement’s on Tez Walker

Social media reacts to NCAA statements on Tez Walker’s verdict, including threats they received and dissatisfaction with UNC’s leadership.

The [autotag]Tez Walker[/autotag] saga continues after the NCAA released a statement explaining their stance on making the transfer WR Ineligible to play for the 2023-2024 football season.

The statement was released Tuesday afternoon in a press release by the NCAA and soon after was plastered throughout social media. The NCAA also stated that they were receiving threats based on their verdict.

“The NCAA is aware of violent – and possibly criminal – threats recently directed at committee members involved in regulatory decisions. The national office is coordinating with law enforcement and will continue to do whatever possible to support the volunteers who serve on these committees.”

The statement then attempts to clarify their ruling, breaking down the transfer portal numbers, with claims that only 3% of the 21,685 student-athletes in the portal would require a waiver due to being a multiple transfer. The statement released by the NCAA ended with the board expressing their concerns with how UNC leadership handled the decision.

“The DI Board is troubled by the public remarks made last week by some of the University of North Carolina leadership. Those comments directly contradict what we and our fellow Division I members and coaches called for vociferously – including UNC’s own football coach.”

It is safe to say this did not boil over on social media slamming the NCAA over their statement, igniting the fire that continues to flame.

Let us look at how social media reacted to the NCAA statement.

UNC Football to wear No. 9 Tez Walker stickers

The North Carolina Tar Heels will wear No. 9 stickers on their helmets today for Tez Walker.

The North Carolina Tar Heels will wear “No. 9 Tez” stickers on their helmets today against Appalachian State to stand in solidarity with wide receiver [autotag]Tez Walker[/autotag], whom the NCAA denied eligibility.

UNC may be without Walker this season, but they are doing everything possible to let the transfer student know he is not alone. Not only will Walker be an honorable captain today, but the team also announced they will be rocking a Carolina blue circle sticker with the No. 9.

The school took to social media to announce the new addition to today’s uniform, reminding everyone that despite the verdict, the team remains behind Walker.

Many have suggested Walker sue, with many public figures criticizing the NCAA’s decision. As of now, Walker will not be lacing up for UNC this year, but who knows what could happen if the free Tez chants continue to make waves around the nation.

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Pat McAfee slams NCAA over Tez Walker decision

ESPN analyst Pat McAfee slams the NCAA over denying Tez Walker eligibility.

The NCAA decision to keep [autotag]Tez Walker[/autotag] ineligible to play for the North Carolina Tar Heels has caused quite a backlash. Now, ESPN analyst Pat McAfee is voicing his opinion on the situation.

On a segment of the live airing of the Pat McAfee show, the former NFL punter turned popular analyst talked about the NCAA decision to deny Walker’s appeal to play. The epic rant was welcomed with loud cheers, including “Free Tez Walker” chants.

The rant went viral, getting plastered on social media and receiving 622K views in less than 24 hours.

Many were hopeful that the NCAA would make the right call. The shocking news only echoed the concerns about NCAA leadership and decision-making. Some suggest UNC play Walker anyway or hope for the case to head to court.

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National media reacts to Tez Walker decision on social media

Here is what the national media is saying about the NCAA’s decision on UNC football wide receiver Tez Walker.

The North Carolina Tar Heels received the news that they didn’t want to hear on Thursday afternoon as the NCAA denied wide receiver Devontez Walker’s appeal to become eligible. Instead of missing just one or two games, Walker will now miss the entire season after transferring to North Carolina in December.

The loss of Walker is a tough one for North Carolina as he was supposed to be Drake Maye’s top target in this offense. Now, Walker has to sit out the year and will make the decision whether or not to return next season or head to the NFL.

In terms of the decision, it was slammed by multiple people including Mack Brown and the North Carolina program. And rightfully so.

But they weren’t the only ones to slam the decision and it didn’t take long for the national media to have input on this. Most of it was in favor of North Carolina, as they slammed the NCAA for the decision to not let Walker play.

Here is some of the national reaction to the decision via social media:

Social Media reacts to NCAA denying Tez Walker eligibility

Social Media reacts to NCAA denying North Carolina transfer wide receiver Tez Walker’s eligibility for the 2023-24 college football season.

The moment has finally arrived for UNC to hear if the NCAA would allow transfer Wide Receiver [autotag]Tez Walker[/autotag] to play this football this season for the Tar Heels.

Many were hopeful that the outpouring of nationwide support, including program rivals, would warrant the NCAA to make Walker eligible. Instead, their verdict remained unchanged, meaning no Walker for UNC this year.

The news was not taken lightly, with social media attacking the NCAA ruling by voicing their opinion. North Carolina’s football coach, Mack Brown, and UNC’s Sports Athletic Director, Bubba Cunningham, shared their feelings following the verdict.

“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.

Cunningham shared similar feelings: “This decision undermines the fair treatment of student-athletes and further erodes the public’s confidence in our national governing body.”

To no surprise, this decision brought quite a reaction, especially with the announcement coming on the heels of what feels like a tone-death tweet by the NCAA.

Let us look at how social media reacted to the NCAA decision not to let Walker play.

UNC’s Mack Brown ripped into the NCAA over the Tez Walker appeal, and it was absolutely justified

The NCAA has completely lost the plot

It wouldn’t be the start of the college football season if we didn’t have a reason to be furious with the NCAA. This time, it’s over the handling of the waiver for North Carolina wide receiver Tez Walker. During the off-season, Walker transferred to join the Tar Heels from Kent State, a school that was his second stop.

A Charlotte native, Walker started his college career at North Carolina Central University, but the Eagles didn’t play in the fall of 2020 due to the pandemic. As a result, Walker transferred to join the Golden Flashes, where he saw action in 20 games.

Before the move to North Carolina, Walker saw a new coaching staff take over at Kent State after the 2022 season. In addition, the move closer to home seemed to make sense as Walker’s grandmother would be able to watch him play in Chapel Hill (which wasn’t possible for her heading to Ohio).

Seems like a no-brainer approval, right? Guess again. Walker had his third — and final — waiver denied on Thursday afternoon, meaning the wideout is out for the season.

North Carolina head coach Mack Brown was unhappy to put it lightly, and he didn’t hold back making his sentiments known in a strongly-worded statement.

“I don’t know if I have ever been more disappointed in a person, a group of people, or an institution than I am with the NCAA right now,” Mack 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.”

Mack continues to state that the NCAA has made a mockery of the mental health efforts it purports to support, and that the NCAA and the committee, “should be ashamed” with their decision. He closes with a strong “Shame on you, NCAA. SHAME ON YOU!”

The NCAA’s flimsy argument is that as a two-time transfer, Walker has to sit out due to more stringent waiver rules. The problem is the stricter waiver guidelines didn’t go into effect until spring of 2023. Walker transferred to North Carolina in December of 2022, months before the NCAA publicly changed its policy. It’s understandable that Mack would be so frustrated and vent that anger. It’s a ridiculous situation.

UNC Football WR Tez Walker has appeal denied by NCAA

The NCAA has denied UNC football wide receiver Tez Walker’s appeal to be eligible to play.

North Carolina wide receiver Tez Walker won’t be able to suit up for the Tar Heels in 2023. On Thursday, Walker had his appeal heard in hopes of getting it reversed and granting him eligibility for the rest of the season. But the NCAA denied it for a second time, meaning Walker is now ineglible for the rest of the season.

It’s a disappointing result for the Tar Heels and Walker as they had hopes of getting the receiver eligible. Walker transferred from Kent State on December 20th ahead of the new rule change by the NCAA but was denied eligibility for the upcoming season, as Brown announced on August 8th that the NCAA had made a decision.

Per Inside Carolina, Walker spoke in front of a panel Thursday via a video call.

Head coach Mack Brown released a statement on the decision:

We’re absolutely crushed to learn that Tez Walker’s eligibility has been denied for this season and he won’t be able to play. 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. 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. They’ve messed so many things up as it relates to college football, and now their failures have negatively impacted the life of one of our own. Just imagine what it is like for Tez to be so excited to come home and have a chance to fulfill his childhood dream of playing for North Carolina in front of all of his family and friends, only to have it taken away despite doing nothing wrong. I can’t begin to understand how this has happened. The decision makers at the NCAA and on the committee should be ashamed of themselves for doing this to a young man. 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. He’s had a rough go of it and this will surely only make it worse. How dare they ever speak about mental health and student-athlete welfare again. We’ve got complete rosters overhauled through the transfer portal, players playing in their 8th year of college, players playing at their fourth school, and the list goes on. Yet, Tez Walker, who has only played football at one school, isn’t eligible. It makes no sense and it never will.

Moving forward, our Carolina family is strong and we need to wrap our arms around Tez, lift him up, and make sure we continue to do all we can to support him. He’s continued to work, on the field and off, and remained an amazing member of our program throughout this ordeal. I know that will continue to happen because that’s the kind of person he is. Despite this setback, Tez’s future remains bright and we’ll continue to do everything we can to help him fulfill all of his dreams.

Shame on you, NCAA. SHAME ON YOU!

Walker is coming off a season in which he was named to the All-MAC first team at Kent State. He’s considered by some analysts to be a top 50 prospect in the 2024 NFL draft.

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College Sports Roundup: NCAA denies waivers, overrated programs, and more from the College Wires

The NCAA denied waivers for a pair of transfer waivers, five teams overrated in the coaches poll, and more from the College Wires.

On Tuesday, it came to light that the NCAA has denied waivers for a pair of ACC transfers.

North Carolina wide receiver Devontez Walker, who transferred to Chapel Hill after spending time at NC Central and Kent State, was denied his waiver. The reason Walker transferred to North Carolina over other programs that recruited him out of the transfer portal was due to his ailing grandmother. Walker is a Charlotte, North Carolina native, cutting his once seven-and-a-half-hour drive from Kent State to Charlotte down to just a two-and-a-half-hour drive from Chapel Hill.

Also worth noting is that while beginning his career at NC Central, Walker could not play in his true freshman season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Unfortunately for Walker and the Tar Heels, the NCAA, despite his reasons for transferring a second time before being a graduate transfer, was not a good enough reason. North Carolina is planning on appealing the NCAA’s decision. Before being ruled ineligible, numerous outlets named Walker a preseason All-ACC selection, and was selected to the Biletnikoff Award watch list.

In a similar situation, Florida State defensive tackle Darrell Jackson, who transferred into the program from Miami this offseason, was also denied eligibility on a hardship waiver. Before transferring to Florida State, Jackson began his career at Maryland before moving over to Miami in 2021.

However, due to his mother’s medical condition, Jackson transferred a second time this offseason, choosing Florida State to be closer to home. Jackson is a native of Havana, Florida, just a 30-minute drive to Tallahassee. Florida State will also try to appeal the denied waiver.