Xavier Lucas labelled "free man" amid transfer portal controversy at Wisconsin

The saga surrounding Wisconsin Badgers defensive back Xavier Lucas has rumbled on for days. The program reportedly refused to process the paperwork necessary to enter his name into the transfer portal.

According to a Yahoo Sports report, the Badgers cited a two-year revenue-sharing contract signed between the program and Lucas as the reason for their refusal to ease the process.

Lucas' attorney Darren Heitner revealed in a post on X that his client's father being ill was the reason for his leaving classes at Wisconsin and subsequent enrollment at Miami while completely bypassing the transfer portal. The winter transfer portal window closed on December 28.

On Saturday, Heitner posted a five-word reaction on X in relation to his client's status.

“Xavier Lucas is a free man,” Heitner tweeted.

The Xavier Lucas saga reviewed

On Saturday, Darren Heitner addressed a document that Xavier Lucas allegedly signed, granting the Wisconsin Badgers his NIL rights. However, it was contingent upon the historic House vs. NCAA settlement being approved in April.

"It’s an MOU conditioned on approval of the House settlement (which has yet to receive final approval) and Xavier attending classes no later than Spring 2025 (he unenrolled from the Institution)," Heitner posted.

"Furthermore, he sought to enter his name into the Transfer Portal, but the Institution improperly denied his right to do so, which is a violation of NCAA rules (I wouldn’t be surprised if the NCAA takes action for that).

"That notwithstanding, the Institution has not paid any monies to him and so he owes no reimbursement to the Institution. Wisconsin’s done enough to ruin its reputation. Move on."

After the news of the standoff between Xavier Lucas and the Wisconsin Badgers broke, the NCAA released a statement on Friday, distancing itself from the conflict.

"NCAA rules do not prevent a student-athlete from unenrolling from an institution, enrolling at a new institution and competing immediately," the NCAA statement read.

Lucas' standoff with the Badgers is not the first case of a player being at odds with a program due to a conflict in revenue-sharing. In September, former UNLV Rebels quarterback Matthew Sluka opted to redshirt the rest of the season after claiming that the program did not fulfill certain NIL payments.

The case of Xavier Lucas has the chance to set a precedent in the fast-changing world of college football. A student-athlete transferring outside of the transfer portal outside of the designated portal windows would be a new thing.