Mack Brown rips NCAA after eligibility ruling on star wide receiver
The NCAA on Thursday ruled promising wide receiver Tez Walker ineligible for the season, a ruling that left North Carolina head coach Mack Brown aghast.
He's not wrong.
"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 in a statement.
"They've messed up so many things as it relates to college football, and now their failures have impacted the life of one of our own."
Brown has every right to be upset.
This is yet another example of the inconsistency of the NCAA. The organization presents itself as a group with the best interest of student-athletes at heart. Yet it fought those same student-athletes from getting a cut of the money they make for the NCAA. It pushes initiatives to take care of mental health, then in the new age of the wide open transfer portal deny the eligibility of a player who followed the rules he was told to.
Walker, who began his college career at NC Central but transferred to Kent State without playing a snap as COVID-19 cancelled the season, was originally told he'd be able to play for UNC right away. Days after telling Walker he could play, the NCAA changed transfer eligibility rules, and under the new parameters Walker was technically ineligible.
"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 is time in college," Brown's statement continues.
"How dare they ever speak about mental health or student-athlete welfare again. Shame on you, NCAA. SHAME ON YOU!"
UNC's head coach isn't the only prominent figure to voice their displeasure with the ruling. North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper took to X to share his thoughts on the decision.
Walker was the only other offensive Tar Heel to join quarterback Drake Maye on the preseason All-ACC first team after compiling 921 yards and 11 touchdowns last season at Kent State.
With Walker missing the season opener against South Carolina as the NCAA mulled their decision, Maye showed what UNC will need to continue doing to win without him.
The quarterback slung the ball around the field, using nine receivers. No single receiver recorded more yards than Kobe Paysour's 66, but six different players hauled in multiple passes, with two different players catching touchdowns.
They also established themselves in the running game, rushing for 168 yards. Senior running back British Brooks in particular stood out, rumbling for 103 yards in his first game after missing the entire 2022 season.
Maye and Co. still put up 31 points on an SEC defense, a total that would likely have been higher if not for two second half interceptions from the quarterback.
Maye has the individual talent to carry North Carolina to a win any given Saturday, but missing a dynamic playmaker like Walker makes the margin for error even slimmer for the Tar Heels in a conference that looks like Florida State's to lose after Week 1.
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