Chapel Hill, North Carolina - In a shocking twist of events, the NCAA has now deemed North Carolina wide receiver Devontez Walker eligible for the rest of the 2023 college football season, they announced on Thursday.

In a statement released by the NCAA on Thursday, officials said they were given new information this week regarding Walker, which led them to conclude that the junior is now eligible for a transfer waiver.

The NCAA pointed out that UNC had not previously shared this information despite having multiple chances to do so.

"It is unfortunate that UNC failed to provide this important information previously. While we must be careful not to compromise a student athlete's right to privacy when it comes to sensitive issues, we want to assure the Division I standards," NCAA president Charlie Baker said in a statement.

"Had the UNC staff not behaved in this fashion and submitted this information weeks ago, this entire unfortunate episode could have been avoided."

In August, the NCAA had previously declared Walker ineligible, and his appeal in September faced a similar outcome, sparking outrage from Mack Brown, the head coach of the Tar Heels, and the entire college sports community.

While the NCAA claims that North Carolina withheld important documents regarding Walker's initial transfer waiver, Tar Heels athletic director Bubba Cunningham called the NCAA's allegations "not accurate," according to Bryan Fischer of Fox Sports.

Cunningham stated that the school provided all required information as soon as it was accessible and still holds the conviction that Walker should have received an eligibility waiver prior to the start of the season.

On Thursday, coach Brown thanked the NCAA for re-examining Walker's situation while Walker expressed gratitude for his eligibility.

"We also want to thank the NCAA for being willing to re-examine Tez's case, and ultimately deciding to grant him his eligibility," Brown said in a statement shared on Twitter.

"I'm so excited and thankful that the NCAA has granted my eligibility to play this season. This hasn't been easy, but l'm looking forward to putting this in the past and moving forward - I've been dreaming of this for a long time and now it will be a reality. See everyone on Saturday," Walker said.

Devontez Walker will suit up for the first time this season on Saturday as the Tar Heels host Syracuse at 12:30 PM ET.