The saga involving a 2015 Texas signee may, one way or the other, soon be coming to an end.
UT has a foreign language requirement other schools don’t have that Du’Vonta Lampkin has not met -- and which he says he can’t meet in time for the 2015 season -- specifically a Spanish 2 requirement. Because of that missing piece of the academic puzzle, Lampkin will not be able to enroll at UT, leading Lampkin to announce early last month that he will be enrolling in another university.
However, UT will not release their 2015 signee from his scholarship. Part of their reticence to give a release is that Lampkin could very likely end up at Red River Shootout rival Oklahoma, to where Lampkin was once committed before he flipped to the other side of the rivalry.
Monday, Lampkin filed an appeal with the NCAA to compel UT to give him his release so that he can start his collegiate career elsewhere. Speaking to 247Sports.com, Lampkin stated that UT will now have 5-10 days to file its own appeal.
If Lampkin’s appeal is unsuccessful, he would be ineligible to play for an FBS team in 2015, but would still have four years of eligibility remaining beginning in 2016. If it’s successful, he could transfer anywhere and be immediately eligible.
A three-star member of UT’s most recent recruiting class, Lampkin was rated as the No. 23 defensive tackle in the nation. He was also rated as the No. 48 player at any position in the state of Texas.
In addition to UT and OU, Lampkin had offers from, among others, Arizona State, Baylor, LSU, Michigan, Mississippi State, Notre Dame, Oklahoma State and TCU.
Lampkin has also mentioned Alabama as a possibility in addition to OU.
(Photo credit: Rivals.com)