Update on Clemson-Ole Miss football tampering saga as Tigers start spring practice
It’s been a month since Clemson football coach Dabo Swinney made national news by directly calling out Ole Miss and Pete Golding for tampering.
Since then, things have been quieter. But don’t take a lack of public updates as a sign of Clemson being passive.
Speaking ahead of Clemson’s opening spring practice Wednesday, Swinney said the school is still eagerly awaiting the NCAA’s ruling on what Clemson framed as a “blatant” case of tampering with its prized transfer linebacker Luke Ferrelli.
“Again, it’s not about a player or anything like that,” Swinney said. “It’s really just about what we can do and we can’t do. Just trying to create some clarity. … There’s a lot of things we need to get answers on from a coaching standpoint.”
NCAA distributes memo on tampering rules
Swinney said that as of Wednesday, Clemson hadn’t received a formal update from the NCAA on the status of its tampering investigation into Ole Miss.
On Jan. 23, Swinney publicly called out Golding and Ole Miss general manager Austin Thomas for tampering with Ferrelli, a former star linebacker at Cal who signed with Clemson before entering the portal at the last minute and flipping to the Rebels. Clemson athletic director Graham Neff also pushed for NCAA action.
The NCAA has acknowledged the status of the investigation, and on Monday Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger reported that the NCAA’s vice president of enforcement sent out a tampering-related memo to all schools.
The memo, per Dellenger, said the NCAA Division I Board of Directors has charged the NCAA enforcement staff to “pursue significant penalties” for tampering violations and publicly announce cases. It also reminded schools about tampering laws, which ban coaches from contacting players not in the portal.
Outside of that, Clemson is in “wait and see” mode. Ole Miss has not publicly commented on Clemson’s tampering allegations, and Golding has not been available to the media since Swinney and Clemson accused him of, among other things, texting Ferrelli in his 8 a.m. class: “I know you’re signed. What’s the buyout?”
Dabo: Tampering comments sparking ‘conversation’
But Swinney, who pushed other coaches to call out tampering by name, said it was a big talking point on a recent coaches’ getaway he took featuring about 20 coaches Nike-sponsored schools and their wives.
“If nothing else, at least we’ve sparked a lot of conversation,” Swinney said, referencing the lack of formal rules surrounding the NCAA portal window. “How many times can you go in and out of the portal in a two-week period? Can you go in three times and you sign with three schools?”
PerJohnCanzano.com, Fresno State also contacted the NCAA about Ole Miss and Golding tampering with one of its players (leading receiver Josiah Freeman, who didn’t enter the portal and remains on the Bulldogs’ roster this year).
One person Swinney hasn’t talked to is Golding, the first-year Ole Miss coach who replaced Lane Kiffin when Kiffin left for LSU and now has Ferrelli on his roster.
“No, I don’t know him,” Swinney said of Golding.
As Clemson started spring practice, though, the loss of Ferrelli was still on Swinney’s mind. He brought up the situation while discussing Clemson’s transfer portal approach on defense and how the Tigers identified their top targets.
“That’s what the frustrating part about linebacker was, right?” Swinney said. “We were taking one ‘backer, and we cancel all these other visits because we’re done (when Ferrelli committed). … So that’s why we need clarity. Like, can you do that? Because that’s a problem.”
Dabo: WR can practice amid eligibility lawsuit
Among other spring practice notes, Swinney said Wednesday that receiver Tristan Smith can practice with Clemson in full as he awaits a legal outcome on a lawsuit he filed against the NCAA to secure another eligibility in 2026.
Smith started four games for Clemson in 2025 and had 239 receiving yards after transferring in from Southeast Missouri State. He previously played two seasons of junior college football and had a waiver for a fifth year denied last fall.
“He can do everything” in the spring, Swinney said of Smith.
The earliest Smith could get a temporary injunction allowing him to compete would be June 8, when he has his first hearing in the case he filed locally in Pickens County, South Carolina (where Clemson is located).
Swinney said that if Smith’s legal appeal isn’t successful, Clemson would welcome him back to campus to finish his degree and train with the team.
“Hopefully it’ll go his way, especially when you look around the country and you see some of the decisions that get made compared to his situation,” Swinney said. “But you always have to go through the process.”
Clemson spring practice injury updates
Swinney said Clemson is generally healthy entering spring practice and has only two players who will miss the entirety of practice: tight end Olsen Patt-Henry and offensive lineman Collin Sadler.
The Tigers will have a number of players limited as they recover from mid-year injuries and/or offseason surgeries, including starting receiver T.J. Moore, linebacker Sammy Brown and offensive linemen Brayden Jacobs and Elyjah Thurmon.
Starting receiver Bryant Wesco Jr., who was hospitalized in October after a scary fall onto his head/neck area on a punt return, “looks amazing,” Swinney said. Wesco will be held out of “live” scrimmage work in the spring but can do everything else.
“He’s doing great,” Swinney said of Wesco.
This story was originally published February 25, 2026 at 5:05 PM with the headline "Update on Clemson-Ole Miss football tampering saga as Tigers start spring practice."
