UNLV QB Matthew Sluka says he’s no longer playing this season.
Sluka said in a social media post that he would redshirt the rest of the season because of unfulfilled promises that were apparently made to him. Sluka has been the Rebels starting QB for the first three games of the season as UNLV has started the season 3-0 with wins over Houston and Kansas.
“I have decided to utilize my redshirt year and will not be playing in any additional games this season,” Sluka said. “I committed to UNLV based on certain representations that were made to me, which were not upheld after I enrolled. Despite discussions, it became clear that these commitments would not be fulfilled in the future. I wish my teammates the best of luck this season and hope for the continued success of the program.”
The obvious inference to make from Sluka’s post is that he was told he’d get certain name, image and likeness compensation that he hasn’t received. If that’s the case, he’s the first and most-high profile player to stop playing mid-season because of NIL promises. Current Georgia QB Jaden Rashada ended up at Arizona State for his freshman season after an NIL deal at Florida fell apart. However, that drama took place before Rashada had a chance to take the field for the Gators.
Sluka took over as UNLV’s starting quarterback as the Rebels needed to look to the transfer portal to replace last year’s starting QB Jayden Maiava. Maiava emerged as the team’s starter as a freshman and threw for over 3,000 yards as UNLV went to a bowl game for the first time since 2013.
He entered the transfer portal at the end of the season, however, and briefly committed to Georgia. After decommitting from the Bulldogs, Maiava ended up at USC and is now the No. 2 QB behind Miller Moss.
Sluka is a fifth-year senior who spent the first four seasons of his career at Holy Cross. He was 122-of-197 passing for 1,723 yards and 20 TDs to just five interceptions in 2023. Players can take a redshirt and appear in up to four games, so Sluka will be able to play a sixth season of college football in 2025 as long as he doesn’t appear in two more games this season.
Without Sluka available, UNLV’s top two QBs remaining are Cameron Friel and Hajj-Malik Williams. Friel has thrown one pass this season and both saw playing time in the team’s win over Utah Tech.
