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Andrea Adelson, ESPN Senior Writer
North Carolina receiver Tez Walker made his long anticipated return to the field Saturday, catching six passes in a 40-7 win over visiting Syracuse.
The NCAA granted Walker immediate eligibility on Thursday, reversing course after initially ruling he would have to sit out this season as a two-time transfer. North Carolina determined that Walker would play but not start because he had spent the previous three weeks working with the scout team. But he was selected to lead the team onto the field, carrying the North Carolina state flag.
“I just felt blessed to be out there,” Walker said. “My teammates have been in my corner since I arrived. Regardless if it’s on the field or off, my teammates are there for me. I’m truly blessed.”
His first catch came in the first quarter. Walker ended up with 43 yards receiving.
“We wanted to work him in,” coach Mack Brown said. “We didn’t want him to be overwhelmed with being thrown out there, then the fans responded to him so well because the story is so important. I don’t know if I could have handled it with all the emotion going on, and I thought he did so well.”
Walker said he was “shocked” when he found out the news but also happy it was over.
“It just felt like a weight was just lifted off my shoulders,” he said.
Quarterback Drake Maye had plenty of options, playing his best game of the season. Maye threw for 442 yards and three touchdowns and added another 55 yards and a score rushing.
He also completed at least 70% of his passes in five straight games, passing Mitch Trubisky for the longest streak by a North Carolina player in the past 20 seasons, according to ESPN Stats & Information.
In his postgame television interview, Maye said it was awesome to see Walker out there.
“It makes me tear up,” Maye said.
Though he had nearly 500 yards of offense, Maye blamed himself for overthrowing Walker on what would have been a touchdown.
The saga between North Carolina and the NCAA lasted two months, as the Tar Heels put public pressure on the national governing organization to allow Walker to play this year, citing mental health as his reason to transfer from Kent State to North Carolina to be closer to his grandmother, Loretta Black. In January, two days after Walker enrolled at North Carolina, the NCAA announced it would crack down on immediate eligibility for two-time transfers.
Citing “new information,” the NCAA reversed course. Walker said his grandmother made it to the game to watch him play for the first time in his college career. When he told her the news on Thursday, Walker said, “She screamed. I had to turn my phone down because she screamed so loud. She was very happy and my mom teared up. It was a special moment.”
