Controversy strikes as Big 12 rejects prospective team entry into conference

We may know more reasons as to why the Big 12 didn't accept Memphis into the conference.

Melina Myers-Imagn Images

Recently, a program that tried to join the Big 12 with a $200 million offer has been embroiled in its own controversy involving an embattled former player. The University of Memphis — left on the outside looking in of the power conference discussion— is dealing with allegations that former Tigers safety Tahj Ra-El leaked elements of the team’s defensive playbook to the Roadrunners ahead of their Nov. 2, 2024 matchup, a 44–36 UTSA win that effectively ended Memphis’ AAC title and playoff hopes. As someone who played Division I ball, I don’t care whether Jeff Traylor, Owen McCown, or anyone in San Antonio used that information or not. If the screenshots and messages are authentic, the very act of offering inside intel is a cowardly breach of the competitive ethos that sports are built on.

Here’s what’s alleged and what’s been said. On3 published screenshots that appear to show Ra-El, who was dismissed from the Tigers last season after sources tell me he was caught having stolen one of his teammates’ PlayStation 5s, sending McCown a photo of Memphis’ signals and a breakdown of coverages, adding that “none of they safeties can cover btw (sic).” Ra-El also flagged an injury to starting safety Kourtlan Marsh, who had suffered a season-ending injury early in the year. A former Memphis player told Sam Shoemaker of On3 and TigerSportsReport, who broke the initial news, “We’re on the field, and their offense has a check for every single one of our defenses’ checks. It felt like their offense was one of the best in the nation until I found out why.”

REPORT: @On3Memphis has obtained direct messages of former Memphis DB Tahj Ra-El sending UTSA QB Owen McCown the Tigers' playbook before their game💀

The Roadrunners won 44-36.https://t.co/h7iD6N0nWj pic.twitter.com/EesFEqzbGG

— On3 (@On3sports) July 24, 2025

UTSA’s response? Traylor called the notion that leaked info affected the outcome “asinine,” said the material “made no sense,” and insisted McCown never brought it to him. McCown said he didn’t ask for it and found it “completely irrelevant.” Purdue — where Ra-El has transferred to for his final year — said the incident is being “mischaracterized,” while his representation acknowledged “errors in judgment may have been made.” And yet, Ra-El no longer appears on Purdue’s online roster. If it’s all “overblown,” as multiple parties now insist, why the roster disappearance? Why the acknowledgement of poor judgment? You can’t label this a non-story on one hand and then make quiet, convenient administrative moves on the other.

Let’s be very clear: even if Traylor and McCown are telling the whole truth — that the info was useless, never implemented, never even mentioned — Ra-El crossing that line is, on principle, disqualifying. First of all, what do we expect them to say? "Yeah, we're really glad that Tahj sent over that intel. No way we were going to beat  Memphis without it. Thanks bud!" It’s antithetical to what teammates sign up for, what coaches preach, and what competitors respect. In an era where the portal has made roster churn a permanent state of being, the sport still relies on the unspoken code that you don’t sabotage the guys you bled with. Period. This is less about whether UTSA schemed up 30 straight points because of a text, and more about the integrity culture the Big 12 — and college football at large — has to defend as money, movement, and media pressure keep accelerating.

We’ve spent the last year talking about competitive-integrity breaches at the professional level — think the NBA’s Jontay Porter situation — and the NCAA isn’t immune. (I’ll keep it to Porter and the broader wave of integrity scandals, because accuracy matters when we start invoking names.) What Ra-El allegedly did lives on the same ethical continuum: a fundamental betrayal of the fairness contract. It undercuts every hard conversation former athletes like me have in defense of the locker room — that most guys are doing it the right way, that “bad actor” stereotypes are lazy and tired. Then something like this drops, and we all get dragged back into the mud to prove the exception isn’t the rule.

Memphis finished 24th in the AP Poll. Change that UTSA result and we’re talking about a possible playoff berth under the expanded format — real stakes, real ramifications, real fallout, and most importantly, real money. If Memphis wins that game and steals the Group of 5 playoff spot from Boise State, do we think that doesn’t shift the mindset around their potential admission to the Big 12 at least a little bit? To wave that away as “overblown” is, frankly, insulting to anyone who’s competed at that level and understands how razor-thin the margins can be. Flip the jerseys: if Memphis had allegedly received UTSA’s signals and run up the score on the Roadrunners to the tune of 50 or 60 points, would anyone in San Antonio be shrugging and calling it irrelevant? Doubtful.

So where does this go from here? UTSA will try to bury it under the “nothing to see here” pile as it barrels into another season in the recently refurbished American Conference. Memphis will insist it’s moved on, if only because there’s no practical remedy. Purdue will hope the internet forgets. But Ra-El can’t run from this. Whether he suits up in West Lafayette or not, this follows him, even after he finishes his pitiful career as a college football player — as it should. Actions have consequences, especially actions that cut at the core of what being a teammate means.

Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

The Big 12 (with 16 members) wants to be one of the four toughest, most cutthroat football leagues in college football, post-realignment. Fine. But toughness isn’t just about NIL stacks, transfer hauls, and fourth-quarter comebacks. It’s about character when nobody’s watching. What’s done in the dark comes to light. And when it does, you either stand on integrity or you don’t. On this one, Ra-El failed that test — and anyone calling it “overblown” is choosing convenience over principle. Shame on you, young man. 

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