CHARLOTTE — UTSA quarterback Owen McCown acknowledged he had a conversation on social media with former Memphis player Tahj Ra-El which contained elements of the Tigers’ playbook but said he did not utilize or share the information with the Roadrunners or his coaches. The messages were first reported by Tiger Sports Report on Thursday.
Speaking at the American Conference media day on Friday, McCown tells the story has been mischaracterized and overstated.
“Tahj, who is the other player, a former Memphis player, is somebody I knew from high school. Out of the blue, for whatever reason, he sent me a couple images that were completely irrelevant. If anybody gets anything, you’re going to look at it, but it was of no help whatsoever to me and anybody really,” McCown says. “I would never do something like that. So, it was completely irrelevant. Bottom line is that’s not how we process things.”
McCown, a 14-game starter at UTSA, played with Ra-El at Myers Park High School in the Charlotte area before signing with Colorado and playing four games with the Buffaloes in 2022.
Ra-El played at Old Dominion for three seasons before spending 2024 with Memphis where he appeared in four games and started two of them.
“The moment I found out, I called Owen. And Owen called me back and said, , and was like, ‘Coach, it doesn’t even make any sense. That’s why I didn’t say anything to you about it during the week.’ I’m in the quarterback room with Owen every day,” UTSA coach Jeff Traylor tells SI. “I know he knew nothing about this. I immediately called [Memphis coach] Ryan [Silverfield] and let him know what Owen told me and Ryan told me it was not a big deal at all.”
Ra-El left the Tigers midseason prior to the two teams meeting on Nov. 2 in a conference game that the Roadrunners won 44–36. Memphis had won four straight in the series coming into the game but trailed by as many as 20 points in the fourth quarter before scoring two touchdowns in the final two minutes.
“I didn’t find out until after the game—it was shortly after the game. There were some rumors going around about it, that our playbook had been shared with him from a former player that was no longer part of our program. And it is what it is,” says Silverfield, who has been in charge at Memphis since taking over for the final game of the 2019 season. “As disappointing as it is to not win a football game, the circumstances had nothing to do with that. We’ve got to move folks forward. Really, in the last 72 hours, it’s come back to light. Coach Traylor and I have had conversations together, we’ve got respect for each other.
“I mean, every coach has had guys who have left in the middle season or left before bowl games. Whether you try to cut iPad access to playbook stuff off or whether you give out paper copies to do that, people taking screenshots, taking pictures, it’s the nature of [college football] nowadays.”
McCown completed 20-of-37 passes for four touchdowns in the victory and was also the team’s leading rusher. Ra-El entered the transfer portal last year and eventually landed at Purdue to play for new Boilermakers coach Barry Odom.
“Our coaching staff sees the scenario as being mischaracterized and does not have any concerns moving forward,” Purdue said in a statement released to local media.
It does not appear the American is set to take any further action.
“We’re supportive of the schools in it,” American commissioner Tim Pernetti said. “What I can tell you is, there’s really not much to this story. I think a lot of it has been sensationalized, and some of it is, I think quite frankly, is clickbait.”
