Powe to accept Ole Miss scholarship; eligibility odyssey might be over

Celebrated recruit Jerrell Powe is expected to sign scholarship papers with Mississippi on Thursday, bringing closer to an end a sometimes-bitter initial eligibility battle with the NCAA.

Powe's attorney Donald Jackson told SportsLine.com on Wednesday night that the player's admission is conditional based on final certification by the NCAA Clearinghouse. Powe can practice up to 14 days while waiting for the ruling.

Powe, a five-star defensive tackle from Waynesboro, Miss., originally signed with Ole Miss in 2005 but did not qualify academically. He then attended prep school at Hargrave Military Academy and signed again with the Rebels in 2006. The NCAA then questioned some correspondence courses the athlete had taken with BYU, saying he couldn't have completed the work without "significant assistance."

Powe's case was not helped when his mother was quoted in court papers saying, "Jerrell is a really good child but he just can't read."

Powe's family filed suit to get a temporary injunction so that he could be admitted but eventually withdrew the action. The NCAA took the unique step of laying out an academic road map for Powe to gain initial eligibility: Take some high school courses over again or attend junior college.

Powe elected to take the high school courses. Part of the process involved taking some courses online and attending a Spanish class in Jackson, Miss. Even after all that, the NCAA required a 27-point list of things it needed to see before ruling on the player. Time became crucial as Ole Miss enters its fifth day of fall drills on Wednesday.

Powe faxed his papers to Ole Miss on Wednesday night and could be at practice as early as Thursday, Jackson said. Now 20, Powe is still considered a blue-chip prospect at 6-foot-3, 330 pounds.

"He has graduated (from high school) twice," the Montgomery, Ala.-based attorney said.

"I've been involved in a number of NCAA cases. This case is different than any case I've been involved in."