It appears we may not have seen the last of Jermaine Grace at Miami after all. Maybe.
Along with defensive end Al-Quadin Muhammad, Grace was dismissed from The U this past weekend for their involvement with a luxury car rental agency. In a missive posted to his Instagram account, Grace indicated that not only will he be back with the Hurricanes, but that he’ll be back this season.The linebacker has hired an attorney to help facilitate a return. From the Orlando Sentinel:
The linebacker has also reportedly hired attorney Jason Setchen, who told the Miami Herald earlier this week he was helping Grace “evaluate all his options” in the wake of Miami’s decision to dismiss him from the football program.
Setchen previously represented former Hurricanes basketball player DeQuan Jones, who was suspended by Miami during the school’s investigation into the actions of former booster Nevin Shapiro. Jones was later reinstated to Miami’s basketball team.
Last season, Grace led the ‘Canes with 79 tackles. He was once again expected to start at linebacker prior to his dismissal.
It’s unclear if Muhammad will attempt a return as well. A third player caught up in the controversy, linebacker Juwon Young, was indefinitely suspended by The U in connection to the alleged NCAA violations involving the agency and eventually transferred to Marshall.
A fourth player, wide receiver Stacey Coley, will reportedly not face any sanctions as long as no new information surfaces.
It was alleged that those four players had received preferential treatment from the agency in exchange for future promises based on their potential earnings as football players. The owner of the agency in question has since publicly claimed that the players involved received no discounts or special treatment because they were football players.