More ACC Tampering Stories Emerge in Wake of Jordan Addison Transfer
PITTSBURGH -- The rumors that former Pittsburgh Panthers wide receiver Jordan Addison was tampered with by USC sparked a national debate over how the newly liberalized transfer and Name, Image and Likeness rules are being wielded. But Pitt is not the only school that has had to deal with the ugly side of lucrative NIL contracts -- reports that multiple ACC schools have had to deal with tampering surfaced this week.
ESPN's Pete Thamel published a story on Boston College star receiver Zay Flowers, who says he received multiple six-figure NIL offers in exchange for entering the transfer portal and enrolling at a different school.
Flowers is one of, if not the, best receivers in the conference. A breakout year in 2020 -- 933 all-purpose yards and 10 touchdowns -- earned him All-ACC Honors. He came close to matching those numbers in 2021 despite playing without his starting quarterback, Phil Jurkovec, who missed half the season with an injury.
Flowers said the money made transferring a compelling option, but ultimately turned down the offers and stayed at BC. He said that he wanted to remain with the Eagles for a few reasons.
First, Flowers said his degree from BC will be valuable down the road and opportunities to make money will come soon enough, so he's fine delaying a payday until next year when he's draft-eligible.
Second, Flowers is excited to work with new offensive coordinator John McNulty and other star offensive players, Jurkovec and lineman Christian Mahogany.
Louisville is also feeling the effects of college football's new normal. Head coach Scott Satterfield told 247Sports that he believes star receiver Tyler Harrell, who transferred to Alabama in April, and other Cardinals were tampered with.
“I think it’s not only him, it’s happened before here,” Satterfield said. “Last year we had a few guys that jumped into the portal and the next day they’re announcing where they’re going. You can look at that and know that something went on before they were in the portal.”
Satterfield said there's no way to prove those allegations, but is convinced that they happened nonetheless.
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