Five more former Ole Miss football players have been granted immediate eligibility at their new schools this fall, according to attorney Thomas Mars, who represented four of them.
Safety Deontay Anderson (Houston), receiver Tre Nixon (UCF), linebacker Jarrion Street (UAB), offensive tackle Jack DeFoor (Georgia Tech) and linebacker Breon Dixon (Nebraska) will not have to sit out the 2018 season after going through the same revised NCAA waiver process that allowed quarterback Shea Patterson to become eligible right away after transferring to Michigan. (Dixon was not represented by Mars.)
After a contentious back-and-forth between Michigan and Ole Miss, which initially resisted supporting Patterson's waiver request, a new rule interpretation from the NCAA gave the schools an opening to hit the reset button. Ole Miss agreed to support the waiver if Patterson withdrew his claims that he was misled during his recruitment about the severity of the schools' NCAA infractions case, which resulted in a two-year bowl ban.
"I couldn’t be happier for these guys. They’ve all maintained a positive, forward-looking attitude for the past four months, but the uncertainty about their future was a heavy burden to carry," Mars told USA TODAY Sports. "As one of them said to me this afternoon, 'I’ve worked really hard and I’ve stayed focused on being the best teammate I can be, but knowing that I can support my teammates on the field this fall is the best feeling in the world.'"
Mars said Florida has not yet submitted its waiver application on receiver Van Jefferson, so there is no immediate ruling on his eligibility.
Florida hasn't submitted its waiver request.
