The NIL era has essentially turned college football into a professional sport, and we now have our first tampering lawsuit between major programs.
Wisconsin and its NIL collective filed a tampering lawsuit against Miami on Friday, according to court documents that were obtained by Ross Dellenger of Yahoo Sports. The allegation pertains to defensive back Xavier Lucas, who transferred to Miami from Wisconsin in January.
Wisconsin, which is seeking unspecified damages, has accused Miami of interfering with a binding revenue-share contract between Lucas and the Badgers. Lucas transferred to Miami without entering the transfer portal, which had already closed.
The lawsuit accuses Miami of engaging in tortious interference and communicating with Lucas about transferring to Coral Gables after the defensive back signed a deal with Wisconsin.
The Big Ten Conference issued a statement supporting the lawsuit.
“We stand by our position that respecting and enforcing contractual obligations is essential to maintaining a level playing field,” the statement said. “In addition to our legal acton, we will continue to be proactive to protect the interests of our student-athletes, our program and the broader collegiate athletics community.”
Wisconsin had a two-year agreement in place with Lucas that was set to begin in July 1, which is the date that schools can begin directly paying student-athletes. Lucas requested a transfer from Miami but was denied. He then withdrew from classes at Wisconsin and enrolled at Miami in January in order to get around transfer rules.
Tampering is against NCAA rules, but this marks the first time that a school has taken legal action over it. If Wisconsin is successful with its lawsuit, it could set a precedent that would have a significant impact on the current landscape of college sports.
While schools are prohibited from communicating with players who are not in the transfer portal, the NCAA told Yahoo Sports in January that current rules “do not prevent a student-athlete from unenrolling from an institution, enrolling at a new institution and competing immediately.”
Lucas’ attorney, Darren Heitner, said in January that Wisconsin violated NCAA rules by not putting Lucas’ name into the transfer portal. Heitner said Lucas decided to enroll at Miami after learning that his father suffered a “serious, life-threatening illness.” The attorney has threatened to file an antitrust lawsuit against Wisconsin.
Lucas played in high school at American Heritage in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., which is near Miami. The former four-star recruit had 18 total tackles in 11 games with Wisconsin last season.
