ESPN's Rece Davis Critical of Former UNLV QB Matt Sluka Amid NIL Dispute

The 'College GameDay' host says that Sluka's lack of written NIL agreement cost him and that he quit on the team.

UNLV quarterback Matthew Sluka announced his intention to redshirt and transfer earlier this week. / Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

ESPN College GameDay host Rece Davis was openly critical of former UNLV quarterback Matt Sluka amid his NIL dispute with the program that went public this week.

Sluka, who is no longer a member of UNLV's football team, announced his intention to redshirt and transfer after he was not paid for an NIL deal that he believed was due to him from the program. Sluka cited "certain representations" that were not met by UNLV that were part of his decision to commit to the school in the summer from Holy Cross as a graduate transfer.

"Matthew Sluka came from Holy Cross, where he was a terrific player there, but he arrived [at UNLV] in July. There wasn't a deep-seeded tie," Davis began. "Probably, the 'Occam's Razor' philosophy, the most likely thing, is probably true. It is probably true that he was promised something, likely, and it was not delivered. That's likely true. It is obviously true that he didn't have it in writing. If you make a dumb mistake in life—if I do, if Matthew Sluka does, or whoever, sometimes you have to wear that, man. And going in there and expecting something without writing and then they don't give it to you, you can't just bail on the team," Davis added.

"If you make a dumb mistake in life, if I do, (UNLV QB) Matthew Sluka does, or whoever, sometimes you have to wear that... And going in there and expecting something without writing and then they don't give it to you, you can't just bail on the team." - Rece Davis 🏈📺🎙️ pic.twitter.com/3dbAiNhQ0h

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) September 28, 2024

Sluka won the starting quarterback job out of fall camp and helped lead UNLV to its first 3–0 start in 40 years. While he completed less than half of his passes in three games with the Rebels, he was a key cog in the run offense for UNLV, and announced his decision to redshirt and transfer leading into a crucial Saturday Mountain West tilt against Fresno State.

The CEO of Circa Sports in Las Vegas contacted UNLV and said he would be willing to pay Sluka an NIL deal to resolve the dispute, but UNLV's representatives said that the program would not engage with Sluka at any point in the future.

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