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LAS VEGAS – UNLV quarterback Matthew Sluka has decided to sit out the rest of his team’s undefeated season over a $100,000 DIM payment that was promised but never paid after he agreed to transfer to the Rebels last winter, Sluka’s agent told The Associated Press on Wednesday.
Sluka’s announcement late Tuesday sent shock waves throughout major college football, where old amateur rules have been dropped but schools and the NCAA are still grappling with how to regulate the way compensating players for using their name, image or photo.
Sluka’s agent, Marcus Cromartie of Equity Sports, said Sluka was promised $100,000 by the UNLV assistant coach who recruited the quarterback last winter when he agreed to transfer from Holy Cross to the Rebels in January.
Equity Sports represents numerous NFL and college players, including Kansas City Chiefs star Patrick Mahomes. Sluka’s father, Bob Sluka, told AP via text message that his son signed with Equity Sports when Matthew Sluka announced his plans to change schools and enter the NCAA transfer portal in December.
Cromartie said that because Sluka is still completing his degree at Holy Cross, he could not sign a DIM contract, which is usually done with booster-backed third parties known as co-ops that serve school athletes — until after he enrolls at UNLV later in the year.
Sluka did not join the team until preseason practice in August. No written agreement was ever put in place, Cromartie said.
“In July, there were NO payments. There was no $100,000, I guess you could say zero dollars. He got a $3,000 relocation fee and that was it,” said Cromartie, who declined to identify the assistant coach and said UNLV head coach Barry Odom was not involved in the initial discussions.
Cromartie said after several weeks passed he reached out to first representatives of the UNLV group and then Odom to discuss ways to pay Sluka the $100,000 he said the player had been promised.
Cromartie said he suggested payments of $10,000 a month over the next five months and even $5,000 a month and was turned down. Cromartie said Odom offered Sluka $3,000 a month.
“At that point I think Matt felt lied to. At that point he wanted to stand up for himself,” Cromartie said.
UNLV issued a statement accusing Sluka’s representative of making “financial demands on the university and its DIM group in order to continue playing.”
“UNLV athletics interpreted these requirements as a violation of NCAA pay-to-play rules, as well as Nevada state law,” the school said. “UNLV does not engage in such activity, nor does it respond to implied threats. UNLV has honored all previously agreed upon scholarships for Matthew Sluka.”
UNLV is scheduled to host Fresno State (3-1) in a big game in the Mountain West on Saturday, with both schools hoping a strong season could put them in consideration for a spot in the 12-team College Football Playoff. The Rebels have already beaten two power conference schools.
The NCAA’s redshirt rules allow players to retain a year of eligibility if they play four or fewer games in a season. Sluka, who played four seasons (2020-23) at Holy Cross, still has one more year of eligibility that he could use at another school next season. NCAA rules do not allow players to play for two schools within the same season.
Sluka did not specify the reasons behind his decision, but college athletes are now paid hundreds of thousands, even millions, of dollars by companies or cooperatives funded by boosters.
“I committed to UNLV based on some comments made to me, which were not confirmed after I enrolled,” Sluka posted on X. “Despite discussions, it became clear that these commitments would not be fulfilled in the future. I wish my teammates the best of luck this season and hope for continued success for the program.”
The NCAA lifted its ban on compensation to athletes for things like endorsement deals and sponsorships in 2021, but few detailed rules were put in place to regulate how athletes are paid beyond saying the compensation can’t come directly from the school.
A patchwork of state laws has created different standards across the country, and college sports leaders, including NCAA President Charlie Baker, have been lobbying Congress for a federal law to help crack down on an unruly system that lacks transparency.
Georgia quarterback Jaden Rashada, who committed to play for Florida out of high school, is suing Gators coach Billy Napier and one of the school’s top boosters after a $14 million DIM contract fell through. Rashad never played for Florida. He was released from his scholarship deal in 2023, transferred to Arizona State where he played last year and then transferred to Georgia this offseason.
“They’re going to have to figure out a system, just like anything else – make sure contracts are signed, or the language is done the right way,” said Mahomes, who has become part of the NIL group at Texas Tech, his alma mater, he said Wednesday when asked about Sluka’s situation.
UNLV went 9-5 last season and played for the Mountain West conference championship, but the quarterback who led that team to the program’s best season in nearly 40 years transferred to Southern California of the Big Ten.
Sluka was one of the best quarterbacks to play in the second tier of Division I, known as the Football Championship Subdivision. Holy Cross reached the FCS playoffs in 2021 and ’22 with Sluka as the starter.
After a coaching change at Holy Cross – head coach Bob Chesney left to take over at James Madison – Sluka moved on as well. after setting a host of school records and rushing for an NCAA Division I quarterback record 330 yards in a loss to Lafayette in 2023.
Sluka has completed 21 of 48 passes for 318 yards, six touchdowns and one interception for the Rebels this season. A shifty and shy runner, he has also rushed 39 times for 286 yards and a touchdown. He had 113 yards rushing in a 23-20 win over Kansas on Sept. 13 following an earlier win against Houston, making the Rebels 2-0 against Big 12 teams.
“At the end of the day, it’s probably $100,000 for a quarterback who’s in a Top 25 program on the bottom tier,” Cromartie said. “The fact that he hasn’t had that or anything in between speaks to the point that it’s being done unjustly and unfairly.”
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AP Sports Writer Dave Skretta contributed in Kansas City, Missouri.
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(Except translation, this story has not been edited by achinews staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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