Mississippi State Grants Garrison Brooks A Release From His NLI

After much uproar and concern about the Garrison Brooks’ situation, Mississippi State men’s basketball head coach Ben Howland spoke with Brooks this afternoon and granted Brooks his release from Mississippi State.

From the press release:

Although the Collegiate Commissioner’s Association, which provides governance oversight of the National Letter of Intent program, denied Garrison Brooks’ appeal to be released from his NLI, Mississippi State coach Ben Howland spoke with the four-star standout from Auburn, Ala., on Tuesday and decided to grant his release.

“I first met Garrison not long after taking the job here at Mississippi State, and I was so excited when he originally committed to playing here. Mississippi State is where his dad (George) played and now works, and I knew this would be special place for him. This entire situation is very unfortunate for the young man, but I don’t want to put him in a situation that causes further family hardship.

“I want to do what’s best for Garrison Brooks. I’m in support of him being happy and successful. I’ve enjoyed getting to know him the past several years, and I want to wish him the best moving forward.”

Mississippi State will have no further comment regarding this situation.

This situation is obviously rough for Brooks and the Bulldogs. Brooks obviously being caught in the middle of all of this as a high schooler is probably not what he wanted or envisioned and the Bulldogs are losing an incredible talent.