Louisville reportedly blocking Shaq Wiggins’ transfer to five schools
UPDATE 5:32 P.M. SATURDAY
After the appeals process, Petrino granted Wiggins permission to seek a transfer to Mississippi State.
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Shaq Wiggins said last month that he would be transferring from Louisville for his fifth year. Since he already has an undergraduate degree, he is eligible to play immediately, wherever he ends up.
But players still need their coaches’ approvals for their next destinations, and Wiggins apparently can’t get Cardinals coach Bobby Petrino to OK five other schools.
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Wiggins told ESPN.com that he is restricted from transferring to Kentucky, Mississippi State, Purdue, Notre Dame and Western Kentucky.
Kentucky and Purdue make sense, since it is usually standard procedure for coaches to not allow players to leave for an opponent that they will play against the following year. But Louisville doesn’t play Mississippi State, Notre Dame and Western Kentucky.
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Wiggins assumes the Bulldogs are a restriction because they recently hired Cards defensive coordinator Todd Grantham, whom Wiggins had followed from his first school, Georgia, to Louisville. Wiggins said Mississippi State would be on his short list if he could go there. He is strongly considering South Carolina and Tennessee.
“When [Petrino] said Mississippi State, I was like, it had to be deeper than what it seems to be because Louisville doesn’t play Mississippi State,” Wiggins said. “It just so happened to be Mississippi State on there, once Coach Grantham left.
“I really don’t know what’s his state of thinking or why he chose to put Mississippi State on there. It’s something personal, but I have no idea why. It’s really not fair.”
Wiggins told ESPN.com that former Cards corners coach Terrell Buckley being on staff at Mississippi State makes them an attractive destination as well.
Wiggins started as a freshman with the Bulldogs in 2013 and earned honorable mention All-ACC recognition in 2015, his first season of eligibility with the Cardinals. Injuries limited Wiggins to just eight games in 2016, and he recorded eight tackles, three pass breakups and one quarterback hurry.
Wiggins told ESPN.com he plans to appeal the restrictions, and that he hopes to enroll somewhere in June or July.
For more Louisville news, visit CardinalSports.com.
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Matt Fortuna is a contributor for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!
