NCAA denies Penn State transfer Matt Glover

Matt Glover. (US Presswire)

Matt Glover left Penn State after this past season. The coach he initially signed with, Ed DeChellis, was long gone, there was that Jerry Sandusky child sex-abuse scandal that dominated the news and campus for months -- and Glover's mom wasn't well, either.

The 6-foot-5 junior, who hails from just outside of Los Angeles, decided to transfer to San Francisco -- and while so many others have received waivers to play immediately, Glover has been denied by the NCAA. His mother, Nancy Willson, told CBSSports.com that the Penn State situation, along with family issues, were the reasons she gave to the NCAA on the waiver in an attempt to gain immediately eligibility.

Willson had a heart attack this past April, just after returning from the visit to San Francisco.

"I think it was broken heart syndrome," she told CBSSports.com. "I believe I had it because of all the losses I've had in my life and because of empty nest syndrome."

You see, Willson lost the oldest of her nine children (six are biological) when he was 18 to a brain virus. She lost her only brother, her ex-husband died of a heart attack a couple years ago and Glover's husband also passed away of colon cancer a little more than a decade ago.

"It's been tough," Willson admitted.

She said that her son gave Penn State a chance -- even after Pat Chambers replaced DeChellis. He averaged 23.5 minutes per game last season, but he just wasn't happy. He wanted to be closer to his mother and also with everything swirling around the campus, he wanted out.

"It wasn't what he signed up for," Willson said. "It was upsetting and I felt really bad for my son. It wasn't the type of atmosphere he wanted."

So Glover, who lost his brother when he was almost 4, his father when he was 7 and his grandfather when he was 8, decided to leave and head back west.

"He wanted to come back closer to home," Willson said. "So he could be closer to his family and we could see him more."

Glover initially signed with DeChellis and Penn State out of Sheridan Community College in Wyoming, where he was a qualifier and honor roll student.

"He's a great kid," said Smiley, who coached Glover for one season. "He did everything we asked him to do when he was here -- and was about as focused as any kid we've ever had. He's definitely the type of kid who you hope good things happen to."

The NCAA has been handing out waivers for kids to circumvent the one-year sitting out period following a transfer at a rapid rate. Some are legit and many are obviously to skirt the rules.

Glover's seems as legit as most.