If you thought the saga between Xavier Lucas, Miami, and Wisconsin is over, you'd be wrong. It's been over a year and things are still moving along in the court system. Wisconsin has a strong tampering case against Lucas and Miami, yet, because of the nature of the NCAA, the case is moving at a snail's pace. However, that doesn't keep Darren Heitner, the lawyer for Lucas, to keep trying to publicly shame Wisconsin for going after Lucas.
Yesterday, the news broke that the Big Ten sent a letter to the NCAA about a moratorium on investigations and infractions proceedings regarding tampering. Heitner was quick to jump onto the internet to find a way to get Wisconsin on his lips again with a "Where's the part about imposing a moratorium on Wisconsin's frivolous lawsuit against Miami related to alleged tampering?"
Of course, he's Lucas's lawyer, so he's going to be running down the lane of "Lucas is innocent." But everybody and their brother knows that Wisconsin has a textbook case of tampering against Miami, so it's not frivolous at all. The question will be, 'How enforceable are punishments against Miami?'
Where’s the part about imposing a moratorium on Wisconsin’s frivolous lawsuit against Miami related to alleged tampering? https://t.co/XqjdFHXZdD
— Darren Heitner (@heitner) March 11, 2026
Wisconsin and the Big Ten are still chasing down Miami over Xavier Lucas tampering
There's a lot of legalese in the above letter from the Big Ten to the NCAA. However, at the basic level, the Big Ten is asking the NCAA to temporarily halt investigations around tampering because the way NIL works doesn't match the rules. Or at least that's their claim.
Heitner is swooping in, hoping this is good news for his client, Lucas. However, it's not. While both cases are related to tampering, Lucas' situation is not what the Big Ten is talking about. The Big Ten letter sent to President Baker is regarding the portal window. The tampering that takes place before it opens. While Wisconsin and the Big Ten's support of the Lucas lawsuit is about tampering with a player under a contract.
Thus, sorry Heitner, the tampering charges against Miami and Lucas' involvement aren't going anywhere because there has to be a line somewhere, and that's an easy one to draw. Players under contract shouldn't just decide they don't want to live up to their contract because another school tampered with them. Wisconsin is going to take this as far as they can, for the Badgers, and for the sport.