TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — FAMU football players Isaiah Land and Cameron Covin have retained attorney Thomas Mars to represent them in the wake of ongoing certification issues.
Monday, the 2022 Rattler Football Team released a letter addressed to FAMU President Dr. Larry Robinson.
The letter, signed by 89 players, addresses several issues the team has with the "student-athlete experience at FAMU."
Land and Covin are two of the 89 players who signed the letter and part of the players who were not certified.
Since being retained by the players, Mars has submitted FERPA releases to the university for the release of all document related to FAMU's efforts to restory Land and Covin's eligibility under NCAA bylaws.
Mars explained that FERPA is a federal law that protects the academic records of college students from disclosures.
"What’s odd about the requirement that they sign a FERPA release form is that Isaiah and Cameron asked for the paperwork themselves so they could share it with me," Mars said. "There is no reason for them to sign FERPA release forms to obtain their own FAMU records, whether it’s their transcript or the waiver application that was sent to the NCAA."
He also stated that over his five years of working with several dozen universities on eligibility waivers, he has never encountered this.
Thursday, Sept. 1, Mars updated that "requests for reconsideration on behalf of Isaiah and Cam were uploaded to the NCAA legislative relief staff this afternoon. They included new information and several important documents not previously seen by the NCAA. I obviously hope to get a decision from the NCAA tomorrow. I also hope that every single member of the Rattlers fan base says an extra prayer for Isaiah and Cam and their teammates tonight. I know I will."
While this is still a work in progress, Mars said he is "becoming more optimistic about Isaiah and Cam having their eligibility restored."
