Former USC receiver Munir McClain re-enters NCAA transfer portal
Munir McClain, the USC receiver suspended last fall amid a federal inquiry into apparent unemployment fraud on campus, has re-entered the NCAA transfer portal, six months after opting to withdraw his name the first time.
His decision to leave USC marks the messy end of a relationship that swiftly soured last fall, when federal agents first arrived on USC’s campus asking questions about the sophomore receiver.
McClain was first suspended from USC’s football team last September as he emerged as one focus of a federal probe into unemployment fraud. McClain told The Los Angeles Times last fall that he applied for and received pandemic unemployment assistance benefits last summer. By late October, federal agents were on USC’s campus, questioning his USC teammates about McClain and whether they were approached about fraudulently filing for unemployment benefits. Some were given subpoenas to appear before a grand jury.
Munir McClain, who collected pandemic unemployment benefits, was suspended in September. His family says no reason was given for the suspension.
For months, McClain’s family maintained that he’d done nothing wrong and that his due process rights were being violated by USC.
At the start of spring practice, with no resolution in sight from USC, McClain remained suspended and sidelined. On Monday, he officially re-entered the transfer portal.
Last November, both McClain and his brother, former Trojan linebacker Abdul-Malik, first entered the portal as tensions between the family and the university were at their peak. Abdul-Malik followed through on his plans, transferring to FCS program Jackson State. But Munir reversed course and returned to USC.
He told The Times in November that he still loved the university and its football program and wanted to stay the course.
Malcolm Epps is the third Texas transfer to commit to USC since the end of last season, joining running back Keaontay Ingram and safety Xavien Alford.
By May, McClain had reversed course again, confirming to The Times on Monday his intention to leave USC.
A strong fall camp ahead of his freshman season seemed to set McClain on an early path to success at USC in 2019. But a torn ligament in his knee against Arizona saw his freshman campaign end early. The next fall, as a postponed season approached, USC suspended the sophomore receiver.
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