Dabo Swinney says Ole Miss broke rules. What is tampering? What’s punishment?

Clemson football coach Dabo Swinney went scorched earth Friday and brought receipts.

Swinney called out new Ole Miss coach Pete Golding for tampering with Cal transfer linebacker Luke Ferrelli, who just joined the Tigers’ program this semester.

At his Friday, Jan. 23 news conference the two-time national championship-winning coach called out Golding and Rebels general manager Austin Thomas for contacting Ferrelli, who recently flipped his transfer to Ole Miss after he initially transferred to the Tigers following his freshman season at Cal.

“I know you’re signed, what’s the buyout?” Swinney said of the text Ferrelli told Clemson general manager Jordan Sorrells he received from Golding during his 8 a.m. class he was taking at Clemson. Ferrelli said he also received a photo of a $1 million check from Golding.

Ferrelli signed his financial aid agreement on Jan. 7 and moved to Clemson on Jan. 11, according to Swinney.

Derrian Carter of the Greenville News — part of the USA TODAY Network — said Swinney mentioned he turned in the evidence of Ole Miss’ continued communication with Ferrelli into the NCAA on Friday, Jan. 16 and reported the matter to AD Graham Neff and ACC commissioner Jim Phillips.

“If you tamper with my players, I’m going to turn you in,” Swinney said.

Carter also mentioned Neff said Clemson is “exploring” legal options with the situation as well.

What is tampering?

Tampering in college athletics is when teams contact players who are on other teams. That is against the rules.

In many cases, teams will do that to try to get players into the transfer portal. However, accusations are rarely publicized.

“We have a broken system, and if there are no consequences for tampering, then we have no rules and we have no governance,” Swinney said.

Is tampering allowed in college football?

No, teams are not allowed to tamper with athletes, according to NCAA bylaw 13.1.1.4.

Here’s what the full rule says:

“An athletics staff member or other representative of the institution’s athletics interests shall not communicate or make contact with the student-athlete of another NCAA Division I institution, or any individual associated with the student-athlete (e.g., family member, scholastic or non-scholastic coach, advisor), directly or indirectly, without first obtaining authorization through the notification of transfer process. Before making contact, directly or indirectly, with a student-athlete of an NCAA Division II or Division III institution, or an NAIA four-year collegiate institution, an athletics staff member or other representative of the institution’s athletics interests shall comply with the rule of the applicable division or the NAIA rule for making contact with a student-athlete.”

What is NCAA punishment for tampering in college football?

According to the NCAA manual, Ole Miss could receive a Level II violation if it contacted Ferrelli after he was enrolled at Clemson. The punishment could worsen if Ole Miss gave Ferrelli money to lure him to the Rebels.

One circumstance for a Level I violation, according to the manual, is “Cash payment or other benefits provided by a coach, administrator or representative of the institution’s athletics interests intended to secure, or which resulted in, enrollment of a prospective student-athlete.”

The Rebels could also get a Level I violation from “third-party involvement in recruiting violations in which institutional staff members knew or should have known about the involvement.”

A Level I violation is the NCAA’s most serious misconduct threshold.

Penalties for a Level I and Level II violations can include fines, suspensions, show-cause orders, postseason bans, scholarship reductions, recruiting restrictions and probation.

Who is Luke Ferrelli?

Ferrelli was the ACC defensive rookie of the year for 2025. He had 91 tackles, including five for loss and one sack, an interception and one pass breakup in 13 games in 2025 for Cal. He led all freshmen in tackles (87) and finished second among all ACC freshmen in tackles for loss (five).

Jaxson Dart, Trinidad Chambliss contacted Luke Ferrelli, Dabo Swinney said

According to Swinney, Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss and former Rebels QB Jaxson Dart contacted Ferrelli before he re-entered the transfer portal.

“Luke also mentioned to (Clemson general manager Jordan Sorrells) and to (Clemson linebackers coach Ben Bouleware) that Coach Golding had Trinidad Chambliss call him from his phone and Coach Golding was there continuing to talk on his phone to push him to re-enter the transfer portal,” Swinney said. “He also said that Jaxson Dart had reached out and called him.”