Jaylon Tyson, Cal receive final ruling on eligibility waiver from NCAA
Jaylon Tyson will be eligible to take the court Friday night for Cal when the Bears host Pacific.
Cal announced Thursday that the NCAA has approved the program’s appeal and granted Tyson immediate eligibility for the 2023-24 season. Tyson applied for a waiver as a two-time transfer and the NCAA initially denied that request.
“We are very thankful that the NCAA has approved Jaylon Tyson’s waiver for immediate eligibility,” Cal coach Mark Madsen said in a statement. “We are excited that he will be back on the court Friday night playing the game he loves.”
The junior forward previously spent time at Texas Tech and Texas.
He initially signed with the Longhorns but entered the transfer portal midway through the 2021-22 season and joined Texas Tech in December of 2021.
He averaged 10.7 points a game in 31 appearances for Tech as a sophomore during the 2022-23 season. He left Lubbock in April, a month after former Tech head coach Mark Adams resigned.
Adams, now an assistant at East Carolina, stepped down from his position following a suspension for making a racially insensitive comment to a player. Adams was also reportedly being investigated for spitting on a player.
Tyson told Sports Illustrated that he was called a slave while at Texas Tech and was told that Adams was his master.
“I believe it’s extremely important for Jaylon Tyson to be granted this waiver, not only for himself but for every other student-athlete that finds themselves in a situation like this in the future,” Madsen told reporters in late October.
Cal opened its season with a 71-66 win over St. Thomas (Minn.) on Monday night.