Tez Walker timeline: Key dates in UNC receiver's eligibility dispute with NCAA

By Brian Murphy, WRAL

North Carolina wide receiver Devontez "Tez" Walker, a transfer from Kent State, has been ruled ineligible by the NCAA for the 2023 season after his wavier for immediate eligibility and subsequent appeals were denied.

Walker, a preseason All-ACC selection, was expected to be an important piece of the UNC offense. Instead, his case has become a national storyline early in the season.

The NCAA's decision has been met with an angry response from the school and the football program and set off renewed debate about the organization's purpose and priorities.

Here is a timeline of Walker's case and his college football career:

Oct. 5: In a reversal of previous rulings, the NCAA rules that Walker is now eligible to play immediately in the 2023 season. In a statement, the NCAA revealed that staff members received new information about Walker. Here is the moment Walker found out.

"This hasn’t been easy, but I’m looking forward to putting this in the past and moving forward," Walker said. "I always knew UNC was a special place, but it’s proved it over and over again throughout the last few months."

Statements: Walker; UNC Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz; UNC athletic director Bubba Cunningham; UNC head coach Mack Brown; NCAA President Charlie Baker.

Oct. 2: North Carolina head coach Mack Brown said Walker would be eligible to play in the College Football Playoff or in a bowl game with the team because either would take place after the fall semester is over.

Sept. 26: North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein sends a letter to NCAA President Charlie Baker. In the letter, Stein calls the NCAA's decision "wrong — and likely illegal." He lays out several legal arguments and writes the transfer rules, "as applied to Mr. Walker's unique case, are unlikely to survive rule-of-season review. But the transfer rules also seem likely to violate the antitrust laws more broadly." He also writes that his "office is considering the full range of options at its disposal to investigate the NCAA’s potential antitrust violations." Stein demands an written response from the NCAA by Sept. 29.

Early September: Two Triangle law firms become involved in the case, including a firm that specializes in NCAA Infraction Defense.

Sept. 13: Saying his "job is to stand up for Tez Walker," Brown defends his aggressive statements about the NCAA.

“I’m not going to apologize for standing up and trying to do what’s best for our young person, and making sure that he understands we have exhausted every possibility that we can to help him," Brown said.

Sept. 12: In a statement, the chair and vice chair of the NCAA's Division I Board say they are "troubled by the public remarks made last week by some of the University of North Carolina leadership." Further, they said the NCAA "is aware of violent -- and possibly criminal -- threats recently directed at committee members involved in regulatory decisions" and it is working with law enforcement.

The NCAA says 3% of the 21,685 athletes who entered the transfer portal are multiple time transfers who require a waiver. Walker is considered a two-time transfer by the NCAA.

Sept. 11: UNC's Board of Trustees, at an emergency meeting, meets for more than 90 minutes to discuss legal options surrounding the Walker situation. Brown, athletic director Bubba Cunningham and Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz attended the meeting.

"We're keeping all options on the table for how to best support our student-athletes at Carolina, and we felt as if we needed some advice from both our legal counsel here and some outside counsel that we've brought in to help us with these matters," Guskiewicz said after the meeting.

Before the meeting, Brown told reporters: "I think it’s awful. I think’s it’s very poor. It’s not fair."

Sept. 9: North Carolina defeats App State 40-34 in double overtime in its home opener. Walker served as honorary team captain and the Tar Heels' wore his helmet decals with his name and jersey number on them.

Sept. 7: In its final decision on the matter, the NCAA upholds its previous rulings that Walker is ineligible in 2023, citing the same reasons as the staff.

In a lengthy statement, Brown said the organization had failed Walker and he wrote: "Shame on you, NCAA. SHAME ON YOU!"

"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 the statement. "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."

Sept. 2: North Carolina opens its season with a 31-17 victory against South Carolina at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, Walker's hometown. Walker's mother and grandmother attended the game.

Sept. 1: UNC announces Walker will not play in the season opener as he remains ineligible. Brown said the school has been pushing for the appeal to be heard before the first game. "I can't express my disappointment in the NCAA strong enough," he said.

Walker writes a letter to NCAA President Charlie Baker and posts it on social media. "I appeal to your logic as a man and as a leader," Walker said.

Aug. 31: The staff upon reconsideration again denies Walker’s waiver, citing the nature of his transfer from NC Central to Kent State, that Walker participated in spring practice at NCCU and that NCCU completed its 2021 season. “Ultimately the student was able to use the one-time transfer exception to avoid satisfying a year in residence at Institution No. 2,” the staff wrote.

Aug. 9: Gov. Roy Cooper writes a letter to Baker, the former governor of Massachusetts, asking that the organization reinstate Walker.

Aug. 8: Walker is not eligible at the moment, UNC announces. It is the first public comments that there are any questions about his playing status.

"This should be one of the happiest times of my life, and instead, I don't know what's going to happen and I'm struggling with all of it," Walker said in a lengthy statement.

Walker's waiver for immediate eligibility has been denied. Brown said the program feels "very, very good," that the NCAA will overturn the decision on appeal.

"I want this to be over," Walker said. "I want to stop feeling like this. I just want to play. I want my grandmother to come watch me. I want to be a student and an athlete and I hope those in charge give me that opportunity."

Aug. 2: Walker makes the 2023 preseason All-ACC team. Walker is the second-leading vote-getter at wide receiver behind Florida State's Johnny Wilson.

July 5: The NCAA's Division I Committee for Legislative Relief denies Walker’s waiver. The committee has the "authority to waive the application of a rule when the circumstances of the case do not fit the intended consequences of the rule, even when the result could be a temporary rule change."

June 21: Staff again denies the waiver upon reconsideration, nothing again the events do not support that the transfer “was necessitated due to mental health challenges rather than athletic reasons.”

May 31: NCAA committee staff denies Walker’s waiver request, nothing that the “chronology of events does not support the [student-athlete’s] transfer to applicant institution was necessitated due to mental health challenges.”

April 15: Walker catches a 35-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Drake Maye in North Carolna's spring game. "It was a dope moment," Walker told the media after the game.

April 11: Brown praises the NCAA's moves on limiting two-time undergraduate transfers. “The other thing they’ve done with the transfer portal, which I think is good, is they’ve said that you can’t transfer twice undergraduate without getting a waiver,” Brown said.

April 5: UNC submits legislative relief waiver to NCAA.

Jan. 11: The NCAA Division I Council unanimously approves recommendations from the NCAA Division I Council Transfer Advisory Group on undergraduate four-year college transfer waiver guidelines. The new guidelines will be used to assess waivers for the 2023-24 academic year.

Among the changes: the elimination of all existing undergraduate transfer waiver guidelines, except for the student-athlete physical injury or illness, student-athlete mental health and diagnosed education impacting disabilities.

Jan. 9: On the first day of classes for the semester, North Carolina announces the addition of Walker and eight other transfers to the football program.

Dec. 21, 2022: Walker transfers to North Carolina, per 247 Sports. The next day, he posts on social media a picture of himself inside Kenan Stadium wearing a UNC uniform.

Dec. 9, 2022: Walker enters transfer portal, days after Kent State head coach Sean Lewis departs the school to become Colorado's offensive coordinator.

Nov. 26, 2022: Walker catches a 7-yard touchdown pass in overtime to give Kent State a 30-27 victory over Buffalo in the team's final game of the season. Walker had five catches for 84 yards and a touchdown in the game. He finished the year with 58 receptions for 921 yards and 11 touchdowns and is named an All-MAC first-team selection.

Oct. 12, 2022: Walker earns Mid-American Conference Scholar-Athlete of the Week honors. He has a 3.777 GPA.

Sept. 24, 2022: Walker catches seven passes for 106 yards and one touchdown in Kent State's 39-22 loss at Georgia, which ends the season as repeat national champions.

Dec. 21, 2021: Walker catches a 73-yard touchdown pass in Kent State's 52-38 loss in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl. It is his lone catch of the game and caps off a season in which he caught just five passes for 124 yards in eight games.

June 8, 2021: Walker commits to Kent State, according to his social media.

May 9, 2021: Walker enters transfer portal. In a social media post, Walker thanks "the NCCU coaches for everything" and says they have "made me a better player and a better man."

April 8, 2021: Walker practices with North Carolina Central during spring practice. "Devontez Walker, receiver that came in out of Charlotte, he's blowing it up. We're excited at the progress that he made. He's going to have a very bright future here," NCCU coach Trei Oliver said in an interview.

Feb. 1, 2021: North Carolina Central reveals its 2021 football schedule after months of uncertainty about its status amid the ongoing pandemic.

July 16, 2020: The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, home to North Carolina Central, suspends the fall 2020 sports season due to the coronavirus pandemic. "This decision was reached after thoughtful discussion and advisement by health experts, though we know it is disappointing for the student-athletes who have worked so hard," NCCU's chancellor and athletic director said in a statement.

March 23, 2020: Walker announces on social media that after "a long 9 months, finally cleared to play."

Feb. 5, 2020: Walker signs with NCCU.

Jan. 16, 2020: Walker commits to North Carolina Central.

Summer 2019: Walker suffers a knee injury. East Tennessee State offers to allow him to "grayshirt," which means he wouldn't join the program until spring practice in 2020.

February 2019: Walker signs with East Tennessee State University.

Nov. 29, 2018: Walker de-commits from East Carolina.

Fall 2018: Walker grabs 91 catches for 1,153 yards as a senior at West Charlotte High School in Charlotte. He is rated as a three-star recruit by 247 Sports.

June 11, 2018: Walker commits to East Carolina, per 247 Sports.