SEATTLE — University of Washington star quarterback Demond Williams Jr. announced he is entering the transfer portal, just four days after signing a multi-million-dollar contract to stay with the Huskies.
Williams’ decision to enter the transfer portal caught many by surprise, including some of his teammates who were at the celebration of life for UW women’s soccer player Mia Hamant. Hamant died after her battle with cancer, and Williams Jr. shared his announcement on social media during her celebration of life.
Michael Bumpus, a former Washington State University and the Seattle Seahawks player, noted that this shift reflects a troubling trend in college sports.
“If I don’t like the deal they are giving me, I can hold out and go somewhere else or even if I sign a contract that is supposed to be legally binding, I can still leave,” said Bumpus.
Paul Fogarty, an attorney specializing in contract law, said that this situation is more about standard contract issues rather than related to name, image and likeness (NIL) agreements.
“This is really not so much an NIL issue, it’s a run-of-the-mill contract issue,” Fogarty said. “But if he goes to a school in another state, then there might be some jurisdictional fight about which law applies.”
As a result of this incident, Bumpus believes there should be greater dialogue regarding athlete contracts and the overall landscape of college sports.
“Since you have committed to the university and they’ve committed to you, it’s only right that you have open conversations and I think that’s where it kind of get’s tricky is that these kids don’t have to have these open conversations. You have your mom, your dad, or maybe your agent kind of whispering in your ear. And in the middle of the night, you put out a statement saying you know what I am going back into the portal,” Bumpus said.
KIRO 7 has reached out to the University of Washington’s athletic department for comment on Williams’ transfer decision. At this time, they were not able to provide a statement but indicated that a comment could be forthcoming soon.