Tez Walker: NCAA rules UNC transfer ineligible following appeal
The eligibility case of North Carolina WR Tez Walker could have made a big difference for his program and the ACC this fall if he was as advertised. However, as of today, we know the final ruling on this matter based on the NCAA’s decision on his appeal.
Walker will officially be ineligible for the remainder of the 2023 season. Mack Brown released a statement on the decision.
Walker’s situation was complicated from the very start of his collegiate career. He started at North Carolina Central back in 2020 but did not play due to the cancellation of their season amidst the pandemic. That then led him to Kent State where he played two seasons with the Golden Flashes. However, upon transferring to North Carolina this offseason, the NCAA’s rules for two-time transfers applied to him even though he never saw any games or action while with the Eagles.
The NCAA initially ruled Walker ineligible at the start of August. His appeal process had continued ever since as the case forced him to miss North Carolina’s season-opening win over South Carolina in Charlotte, a game in which he, as a native of the Queen City, had several people in attendance to see his debut.
Again, this update is as big as it is considering what kind of weapon that Walker could have been for UNC QB Drake Maye. Over two seasons at Kent State, he caught 63 passes for 1,045 yards and a dozen touchdowns. Based on everything out of Chapel Hill, he was ready to be that kind of player again, if not better, for the Tar Heels this fall.
Brown addresses how Tez Walker has handled situation with the NCAA
Tez Walker didn’t receive his eligibility in time to participate in North Carolina‘s season-opening 31-17 win over South Carolina. After the game, Mack Brown discussed his wide receiver’s mental state amidst all of the disappointing news.
“He really didn’t handle it well during the week,” Brown said. “He struggled in practice. I don’t know if he would have played well if he had played. There’s so much pressure on him. It’s a life’s dream to play at Carolina. It’s a life’s dream to play at Charlotte against South Carolina. Family members have 30 tickets and he doesn’t get to play and he gets told the day before the game.”
Although Walker wasn’t granted eligibility in time to contribute to North Carolina’s opening effort, the Tar Heels aren’t giving up yet.
“Another committee will look at it next week on Thursday,” Brown said. “He’s got to sit here and wait until Thursday to see if he can play. And we’ve got to practice him and try to help him get through this. We didn’t even want to leave him by himself last night. He said, ‘Can I go home?’ and we said, ‘No, you need to stay here and be with us and be around the team.’”
While Walker can’t make spectacular plays on the field, Brown claims he is still making massive contributions on the sideline.
“I told Tez on the sideline, ‘Gavin Blackwell dropped a couple of balls. Go pick him up.’” Brown recalled. “I said, ‘You’re sitting here in a position where you know how it feels to feel that so pick him up. That’s your job tonight. You go coach and help these guys.’
“I was so pleased that he walked over and he was talking to Gavin and he was saying, ‘You’re good. You’re good. I’ve seen you catch balls all the time’. So, he actually helped us with coaching on the sideline instead of pouting.”