Shortly after the new year, it was reported that the Syracuse football program had landed a commitment from transfer portal tight end Michael Smith, who had previously played at South Carolina.

Now, it's being reported by 24/7 Sports that Smith is trying to head back to South Carolina, but Syracuse isn't making it easy.

From Javon Edmonds of Syracuse.com:

247 is reporting that Syracuse tight end Michael Smith was attempting a return to South Carolina, but the Orange won’t nullify the necessary paperwork that Smith signed.

I want to make this clear: This is speculative, but after what we saw play out with Washington and quarterback Demond Williams Jr., the questions seem fairly clear.

1) Given that Smith allegedly signed a contract, Syracuse has the right to enforce something. Are they trying to get Smith to play at Syracuse even though he may not want to?

2) Did Smith's signature come with any kind of NIL guarantee? If that's the case, Smith likely has to return the money. Would South Carolina need to give Syracuse a buyout penalty?

We are clearly at a crossroads in college athletics. Contracts exist, but what exactly do they mean? And how are they enforced?

As a freshman at South Carolina, Smith had 10 catches, 106 yards and a touchdown. As a sophomore, he had just two catches and 20 yards before leaving the program in October.

At the time of his exit, South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer made it seem like Smith was unhappy with his role and usage in the Gamecocks program.

Per the Greenville News:

"I told him the same thing I told our team, there's competition in every position," Beamer said. "Mike did a lot of good thing for us in 2024 and I certainly didn't want him to leave. I love the kid. At the same time, he missed all of spring practices, which put him behind a little bit."

Beamer did not disclose what injury caused Smith to miss spring practice, but said he had a shoulder injury in the beginning of this season.

Ahmad Miller, RB (Jackson State)

Jartavius Flounoy, DT (Georgia State)

Cole Weaver, WR (Miami of Ohio)

Ju'Juan Johnson, RB (LSU)

Michael Smith, TE (South Carolina)

Chris D'Appolonia, LB (Toledo)

Elijah Moore, WR (Florida State)

Keyshawn Johnson, Edge (UT-Martin)

Dillan Fontus, DL (Maryland)

Amari Odom, QB (Kennesaw State) 

Amare Snowden, DB (Toledo)

Tunmise Adeleye, DE (UNLV)

Nazir Ward, DB (Western Kentucky)

Matthew Outten, WR (Penn State)

--Via CFBDepth.com

Yasin Willis, RB (Kansas)

Kaylib Singelton, DB (Mississippi State)

Ibn McDaniels, DB (Penn State)

Joshua Miller, OL (Austin Peay)

Rickie Collins, QB (Kennesaw State)

Jahide Lesaine Jr., LB (Monmouth)

Luke Carney, QB (Houston)

Emanuel Ross, WR (UConn)

The Syracuse University women's basketball team will take on Cal on Thursday night at the JMA Wireless Dome. Tip-off is 6 p.m. ET.

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