Jamichael Stillwell, a forward who committed to Texas Tech, is currently ineligible to compete for the Red Raiders due to a recent legal development. A Georgia appeals court granted the NCAA a stay on previously issued injunctions, reversing the eligibility status of several athletes who had been relying on those court orders.
Stillwell was a top target for head coach Grant McCasland, who announced plans to play a fifth year of college basketball. The forward had previously played for UCF and was part of the 2022 recruiting class.
These players argued they should benefit from an additional year of eligibility under revised NCAA guidelines, but the governing body has consistently sought to reverse decisions allowing that extra year.
The court’s decision affects multiple players across the country, including RJ Godfrey at Arizona, Chauncey Wiggins at Gonzaga, Dillon Hunter at Clemson, and Dan Skillings at Grand Canyon. For Texas Tech, this ruling places Stillwell in a similar position to teammate Donovan Atwell, who also faces eligibility issues after a stay was granted in Colorado.
Unlike Atwell, Stillwell had pursued a personal injunction in Georgia rather than relying on a blanket ruling from a judge in Colorado. Atwell has since filed a lawsuit in Lubbock County seeking a temporary injunction, with a hearing scheduled for October 15 after being rescheduled from September 11.
Stillwell may now attempt to file a similar lawsuit in Texas, as no stay has yet been issued within the state.
