NCAA releases statement on transfer waivers addressing violent threats, criticizes UNC, Mack Brown

On Tuesday, the NCAA released a statement claiming the organization’s committee members are receiving criminal threats due to their decisions regarding transfer waivers.

“The NCAA is aware of violent – and possibly criminal – threats recently directed at committee members involved in regulatory decisions,” Jere Morehead, the chair of DI Board and president at University of Georgia wrote. “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 Division I Board of Directors believes that NCAA staff and the committee are applying transfer waiver guidelines as intended by member schools and giving proper and full consideration to individual cases, including consulting a panel of licensed mental health experts for cases in which mental health is cited as a reason for transfer. The DI Board last year directed the DI Council to refine the guidelines for transfer waivers and apply those guidelines to the 2023-24 academic year. These new guidelines were supported unanimously by all 32 Division I conferences in January, and prior to that were widely supported by member schools and coaches associations.”

The fuel to the fire

This announcement comes after the NCAA recently denied several transfer waivers, including the waiver of North Carolina wide receiver Tez Walker. North Carolina has openly fought back against the NCAA’s decision, and even reportedly considered legal action.

Despite North Carolina’s complaints, the NCAA has not altered its decision. In its statement, the NCAA attempted to explain its reasoning in transfer waiver decisions and share the statistics behind its cause.

“Academic data demonstrates that transferring typically slows student-athletes’ progress toward a degree, especially with those who transfer later. It stands to reason that multiple transfers would further slow time to a degree. Citing extenuating factors, such as mental health, does not necessarily support a waiver request but instead may, in some situations, suggest a student-athlete should be primarily focused on addressing those critical issues during the initial transition to a third school.

“The DI Board Administrative Committee was briefed Monday on the current status of transfer waivers for this academic year. There are 21,685 student-athletes who entered the transfer portal this year. The bulk of those transfer students are first-time transfers who enrolled at their first schools and are now immediately eligible to compete at their new schools – which was the intent of the transfer rule change. Of those who entered the portal, 3% would be multiple time transfers who would require a waiver to compete immediately for this academic year if enrolled at a new school.”

North Carolina fights back against NCAA decision

Despite any justification from the NCAA, UNC’s leadership has not backed down on their stance. Just last week, UNC Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz released a statement criticizing the NCAA’s decision. The NCAA addressed Guskiewicz and his fellow Tarheels’ beliefs directly.

“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. We are a membership organization, and rather than pursue a public relations campaign that can contribute to a charged environment for our peers who volunteer on committees, we encourage members to use established and agreed upon procedures to voice concerns and propose and adopt rule or policy changes if they are dissatisfied.”