NCAA files motion that could delay preliminary injunction in Tyon Grant-Foster case

The ongoing NCAA eligibility waiver saga of Gonzaga transfer Tyon Grant-Foster encountered another potential roadblock Wednesday afternoon.

Less than 24 hours before Grant-Foster was expected to appear in front of Spokane County Superior Court at a preliminary injunction hearing, the NCAA filed a notice of removal motion, requesting the player’s case move to a federal court.

The NCAA pleading, which was filed at 4:03 p.m. on Wednesday, likely postpones Thursday’s injunction hearing, originally set for 3:30 p.m., and also delays a potential ruling in Grant-Foster’s eligibility case.

Grant-Foster, who spent the last two seasons at Grand Canyon University before transferring to Gonzaga, filed a lawsuit and hired legal representation last week when the NCAA rejected an appeal challenging the governing body’s decision to deny his eligibility waiver.

Anticipating Thursday’s injunction hearing, Gonzaga coach Mark Few elected not to travel to West Coast Conference Media Day in Las Vegas, according to a news release that was sent by the school hours before the NCAA’s notice of removal was filed.

Even with the possibility of no injunction, Few was advised to stay in Spokane and remain on standby in the event a judge is available to hear Grant-Foster’s case on Thursday. Gonzaga assistant Brian Michaelson will take Few’s place at Media Day and appear Thursday alongside players Graham Ike and Braden Huff.

“The NCAA’s filing seeks to take the case out of Spokane County Superior Court and send it to federal court on a ‘rare’ claim that the NCAA has never made before in these eligibility matters – that is, that NCAA eligibility rulings cannot be challenged under state law,” Grant-Foster’s attorneys, Carl Oreskovich, Elliot Abrams, and Andy Wagley, wrote in a joint statement. “The NCAA’s filing makes numerous misstatements of fact and, we believe, is legally flawed at its core.”

In the notice of removal, the NCAA’s defense team claims approximately 54 student-athletes have sued the governing body in the last year, with 37 lawsuits seeking expedited injunctive relief for an additional year of eligibility. The NCAA has won “most of those cases,” according to the document.

The defendants claim Grant-Foster’s eligibility has finished “because he had the opportunity to play four seasons of his sport” while also maintaining the “plaintiff’s legal theories are largely variations on the same themes courts have rejected across the country.”

Grant-Foster’s attorneys opposed multiple statements made by the NCAA in Wednesday’s removal notice, including a claim the state court has “not acted on” the player’s request for an expedited hearing.

According to documentation publicly available on the Spokane County Court website, a motion to shorten time was filed by Oreskovich on Tuesday and subsequently granted, allowing that the injunction be moved up to 1:30 p.m. on Thursday.

The defense also claims Grant-Foster failed to file a particular declaration regarding of service. Grant-Foster’s attorneys also refuted that statement, contending the declaration was filed in the court docket, made publicly available and e-mailed to the NCAA before it claimed the document was not filed.

The timing of any court hearing could be critical in Grant-Foster’s case. The Zags open the regular season Nov. 3, but more pressing is an Oct. 28 deadline to accept a winter sports scholarship from the university. Grant-Foster’s attorneys indicated they’d need to meet with school officials to determine potential next steps if a ruling isn’t made before that date.

“We look forward to addressing these matters in court and, we hope, seeing Tyon on the basketball court very soon,” Grant-Foster’s attorneys wrote in the statement.