Baker Mayfield has been one of the best stories in college football this season. The former walk-on had an incredible year for the Oklahoma Sooners, leading them to a College Football Playoff berth. While Mayfield might be able to win the National Championship, he might not be able to win the battle to regain his fourth year of eligibility.
Mayfield and his family have tried appeals with both the Big 12 and NCAA with no success. That leaves them with one option: shaming the NCAA.
"Suing them doesn't do us any good," Baker's father James told The Oklahoman. "Two or three years could elapse before we got a legal rendering ... Publicity, transparency and accountability, that's the kryptonite with the NCAA. They don't want that."
Mayfield originally walked-on to Texas Tech, starting seven games his freshman year. However, issues with head coach Kliff Kingsbury led him to transfer. Mayfield tried to get Texas Tech to allow him to use a one-time transfer exception available to only walk-ons in football. Texas Tech refused.
That decision forced Mayfield to sit out a season and lose a year of eligibility. That gives him four years to play three seasons instead of the usual five years to play four.
The Big 12 voted to reject Oklahoma's appeal to give Mayfield another season. And even if Texas Tech wanted to change their minds, it wouldn't change anything.
"This penalty is already set and cannot be retroactively ‘dismissed' by Texas Tech since Baker already completed the academic year in residence," Big 12 spokesman Bob Burda said. "So at this point, Texas Tech retroactively granting the use of the one-time exception does no good since the academic year in residence requirement was already applied."
The last hope for Mayfield is for the NCAA to grant him a hardship waiver. In that case, the Big 12 rule won't matter.
“Baker, with the higher profile that he had, is going to create a higher interest and dialogue,” James Mayfield said. “That's our chance.”
If Mayfield can't shame the NCAA into granting him the waiver, next year will be his senior season.
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